In the months after accutane's commercial
release in 1982 it became evident that
something was seriously wrong. By 1983 a
number of public consumer groups began a
petition asking the FDA to force La Roche
to include warning information with the
drug.
These concerns escalated to cause another
petition calling for an Accutane ban in
1988. Current statistics suggest that
about 25 percent of Accutane pregnancy
births result in serious birth defects and
50 percent of the Accutane pregnancy
births result in mental disability.
Guidelines for Females
1. Do not take Accutane if you are
pregnant or if you could become pregnant
during treatment or for one month after
you stop taking Accutane.
2. Accutane is in the FDA pregnancy
category X. This means that Accutane is
known to cause severe birth defects in an
unborn baby.
3. It can also cause miscarriage,
premature birth, or death of the baby.
4. Two reliable forms of birth control
must be used at the same time
