Does Duphaston help with acne?

In this article we will look at whether Duphaston helps with acne.

Progesterone deficiency is common among women. It provokes the development of endometriosis, dysmenorrhea and other diseases of the reproductive system. To prevent the occurrence of cysts in the body (due to a lack of progesterone), gynecologists prescribe Duphaston to women. The instructions for use describe in detail when and in what dosages the drug should be taken.

The drug is an analogue of natural progesterone. Dydrogesterone is close in pharmacological and chemical properties, as well as in its molecular structure, to natural progesterone. Due to the fact that dydrogesterone is not a derivative of testosterone, this substance does not have the side effects characteristic of the bulk of progestogens of synthetic origin, which are also called “androgenic” progestogens.

Properties of dydrogesterone

Dydrogesterone does not have anabolic, estrogenic, glucocorticoid, androgenic and thermogenic activity. Representing the progestogen component of HRT during menopause, this active element of the drug Duphaston helps to enhance the beneficial effects of estrogens on the lipid composition of the blood. However, unlike estrogens, which tend to have a negative effect on blood clotting, dydrogesterone has no effect on coagulation parameters.

Treatment of threatened miscarriage

The threat of miscarriage is considered to be the presence of bloody discharge when the cervix is closed during pregnancy up to 20 weeks. If the cervix begins to dilate at this stage, maintaining pregnancy with any medications is extremely unlikely. I would like to emphasize that nagging pain in the lower abdomen, as well as the “tone” of the uterus according to ultrasound, are not signs of a threatening miscarriage.

Treatment of threatened miscarriage is possible only after an ultrasound scan, which confirms that the fetus:

Located in the uterine cavity
Alive
There are no signs of serious developmental defects.

Treatment should be carried out in a hospital under the supervision of a doctor.

In this situation, progesterone drugs are effective and help reduce the incidence of spontaneous abortion, but most studies in this area have assessed the effectiveness of progesterone administered intramuscularly, and not in the form of tablets or suppositories (since the woman is in a hospital).

Conclusion: Progesterone drugs reduce the likelihood of miscarriage if there is a threat of miscarriage (bloody discharge is the main symptom!!!), but there is insufficient data on the effectiveness of these drugs in the form of tablets or suppositories.

How does the drug affect the skin?

In order to understand whether this drug helps in eliminating acne, you need to find out how it affects the skin:

Tendency to develop swelling. Fluid retention in the skin structures does not help prevent acne.
Increased production of sebum. This is why many women experience oily skin two weeks before menstruation. This is how progestogen hormones that are natural to the body act. If you take the medicine we describe, the oiliness of your skin will increase even more. Therefore, it is doubtful that Duphaston will get rid of acne on the face.
Decreased immune defense. Duphaston, like other gestagenic drugs, has a suppressive effect on the body's immune system, which makes the skin vulnerable to the penetration of pathogenic microorganisms that provoke the formation of acne.
Tendency to develop age spots. The drug "Duphaston" acts on skin cells that react to ultraviolet radiation. Therefore, if you sunbathe or visit a solarium while taking this drug, pigment spots may appear on the skin.

The hormonal drug Duphaston has an excellent effect on the female body, especially in situations that involve maintaining pregnancy. However, it has a negative effect on the condition of the skin. It should be used only according to strict indications and after consulting a specialist. So does Duphaston help with acne?

The opinion that a pharmaceutical product helps against acne no worse than any specialized cosmetic product is very erroneous. Moreover, when using it, inflamed tubercles may appear on the face and the condition of the skin may significantly worsen. This is due to the fact that this drug is based on a hormonal component, so when treating it you need to be careful and follow the recommendations of the treating specialist to avoid negative effects.

But there are times when acne occurs when taking Duphaston. Why is this happening?

Support for the second phase of the cycle during IVF

As has already been mentioned several times, progesterone is the hormone of the second phase of the cycle. After ovulation, the corpus luteum forms in the ovary, which produces progesterone, which, in turn, prepares the endometrium (the inner lining of the uterus) for implantation of a fertilized egg.

Women undergoing IVF require drug support for the second phase of the cycle, either due to initially existing problems with the cycle, or due to inadequate production of their own progesterone after stimulation of the first phase of the cycle. In this situation, progesterone drugs are necessary and important, but there are fundamental points in their use:

Progesterone drugs should be prescribed only in the second phase (that is, after there is all evidence of ovulation occurring).
A woman receiving progesterone drugs in the second phase should be under medical supervision during the cycle (with regular monitoring by ultrasound and/or the level of certain hormones in the blood).
Women with irregular cycles especially need to monitor ovulation in each cycle before starting progesterone drugs, as they are more likely to artificially suppress ovulation with these drugs if they are not started on time.

Prescribing progesterone drugs to support the second phase of the cycle as part of an IVF program does increase the likelihood of the onset and progression of pregnancy and the birth of a healthy baby, however, even in this situation there are unresolved issues, and research on other ways to support the second phase of the cycle continues.

Conclusion: Progesterone tablets can be used to maintain the second phase of the cycle as part of IVF programs, but only after the fact of ovulation has been established.

Why does medicine cause acne?

Medicine and acne are closely interrelated, only this hormonal medicine does not treat it, but, on the contrary, contributes to its occurrence. So, can Duphaston cause acne? While using the drug, acne may occur because the tablets disrupt the water balance in the body. And this pathological phenomenon is due to the fact that gestagens can disrupt fluid balance or increase the production of sweat through the exocrine glands. The result of excessive sweating and sebum production is the accumulation of fat on the skin and clogging of the pores. As a result of such processes, all favorable conditions are created for the occurrence of acne. Therefore, acne from Duphaston is a fairly common occurrence.

Recommendations from experts

During the hot season, the skin especially needs protection and additional care. Daily cleansing and moisturizing is essential for any skin type. Due to the heat, sweating increases, which leads to clogged pores and the spread of infection. Many experts recommend tar soap for skin disinfection in the summer.

It is important to monitor your drinking regime to avoid dry skin.

Wise advice

The main principle of healthy and safe tanning is the time during which you can safely lie in the sun. From 12 o'clock it is better to avoid sunbathing, as it can cause more harm than good. Your first visit to the beach should not start with a sun lounger. A short active rest will help the body adapt more quickly. The first tanning session does not need to be done for more than ten minutes, but the time can be increased every day. If you already have acne on your skin, you need to consult a doctor about whether you can take sunbathing.

During the summer, many people are exposed to direct sunlight. In their quest for an even, beautiful tan, they forget about safety rules and expose their skin to unnecessary sun exposure. Large doses of ultraviolet radiation lead to excessive dryness of the skin and increased activity of the sebaceous glands. You should not be upset if acne appears after sunbathing, but you must definitely find out the reason in order to prevent their reappearance. Available folk recipes will help relieve itching and inflammation before visiting the doctor.

What to do?

If acne appears while taking this pharmacological drug, it is recommended to stop treatment. If after stopping the medication after 7-30 days the acne does not disappear, you need to look for another cause. Hormone therapy should be discontinued strictly under the supervision of a physician. It is not always possible to stop treatment, and therefore it is necessary to resort to certain measures that are aimed at combating pathological rashes. Various folk remedies and professional cosmetic products are suitable for this.

Can Duphaston cause acne? You have already learned about this, but there are other side effects from the drug.

Prevention of premature birth during singleton pregnancy in women at risk

Can progesterone medications prevent preterm labor in women at risk (i.e., women who have had a previous preterm birth or women with a shortened cervix on ultrasound).

Again, progesterone, being a pregnancy hormone, should help prolong pregnancy and prevent contractions from starting.

The results of many studies support this hypothesis and demonstrate that prophylactic administration of progesterone in late pregnancy to women at risk does reduce the likelihood of premature birth, stillbirth and other negative consequences for the fetus. To be fair, all this data was obtained for progesterone injections or pessaries containing progesterone (a device inserted into a woman’s vagina that releases the desired drug). Tablets and suppositories in this context have not been studied enough.

Conclusion: Progesterone drugs do help reduce the likelihood of premature birth in women at risk, but injections and pessaries have proven effectiveness. Tablets and suppositories have not been studied enough.

Side effects

The medicine, regardless of the purpose of its use, can cause some side effects, which include:

Digestive system: diarrhea, nausea, constipation, minor disturbances in liver function, accompanied by malaise, weakness, abdominal pain and jaundice.
Endocrine system: in rare cases, a feeling of discomfort in the mammary glands and the development of uterine bleeding may occur.
CNS: mild cephalalgia, dizziness, depressive disorder.
Skin: itching, rash.
Allergic phenomena: urticaria.
Hematopoietic system: hemolytic anemia (rare).
Other pathological reactions: peripheral edema.

Prevention of premature birth in multiple pregnancies

About half of women carrying twins will give birth to their babies prematurely (i.e. before 37 weeks of pregnancy). With triplets and more fetuses, this risk is even higher. Premature birth poses a danger to the life and health of the child, and therefore many studies have been devoted to the issues of its prevention, including in multiple pregnancies.

Given that progesterone is the main hormone of pregnancy, it is logical to assume that its use will prolong pregnancy and improve outcomes for the child. However, existing studies on the use of progesterone in the form of injections or suppositories (tablets in this aspect have been poorly studied) have not revealed any advantages for mother and child. In other words, to date there is no reason to prescribe progesterone prophylactically to women with multiple pregnancies.

Conclusion: Progesterone preparations in suppositories and injections do not help in the prevention of premature birth in women with multiple pregnancies. Tablets in this aspect have been poorly studied.

Reviews of Duphaston for acne

Today, almost every second woman of childbearing age has taken the drug Duphaston, so there are a lot of reviews about this medicine. They also indicate the effect of this product on the condition of the skin. Many patients who were prescribed this hormonal medicine noted that while taking it, their skin greasiness increased significantly, which became the cause of the development of acne. This phenomenon was observed in most women. Despite the fact that there is an opinion that acne can be eliminated by using the drug Duphaston, patients in the reviews refute it.

This medication increases the likelihood of acne appearing on the face, especially in cases where the patient has a tendency to this pathology. Acne is becoming more common, and many women have been forced to turn to cosmetologists and use medications that help fight acne. Such cosmetic products, according to patients, help eliminate only the consequence of the problem, and the cause remains during treatment with this drug, since it comes from within and represents a hormonal imbalance in the body.

We reviewed reviews of Duphaston for acne on the face.

Uterine bleeding

Uterine bleeding is a common problem for women of reproductive age. There are a variety of approaches to treating this problem, which can be caused by a variety of diseases. To stop uterine bleeding, regimens ranging from tablets to surgery to remove the uterus can be used. The use of progesterone preparations in this case has a logical justification: progesterone is the hormone of the second phase of the cycle, it is responsible for the changes that occur at this time in the endometrium (inner lining of the uterus), and for “keeping” the endometrium in its place (before menstruation, progesterone levels drop, the bleeding mechanism starts). Thus, an attempt to maintain high progesterone levels in women with uterine bleeding appears to be justified. What do the studies say? Indeed, there is an effect from the use of progesterone tablets, but other treatment methods (in particular, the levongestrel spiral) have a much more pronounced effect and significantly improve the quality of life of these patients. Sadly, the most effective method of treatment remains surgery to remove the uterus. However, levonorgestrel-containing IUDs should be tried before deciding on surgical treatment.

Conclusion: Progesterone tablets may have a positive effect in patients with uterine bleeding, but there are much more effective treatments that should be preferred.