Amcinonide is a man-made topical corticosteroid. It reduces the actions of chemicals in the body that cause inflammation, redness, and swelling.
What is amcinonide used for?
Amcinonide is a glucocorticoid medication. It is used to treat skin conditions such as eczema, psoriasis, and dermatitis. When applied to the skin, amcinonide works by reducing inflammation and itching. It is available as a cream, ointment, or lotion.
Amcinonide brand names
Amcinonide is a generic name of the drug. The brand names of this drug are the followng:
United States:
- Cyclocort
Canada:
- Amcinonide, Cyclocort Cream, Cyclocort Lotion, Cyclocort Ointment
Which body parts should be avoided when using amcinonide?
Only the skin should be used for this medication. Keep it out of your eyes. It should not be applied to skin that has been burned, scraped, or cut. Rinse it off with water as soon as possible if it does get on these locations.
Only skin diseases that your doctor is treating with this medication should be used. If you think there might be a skin infection present, specifically, consult your doctor before using it for any other conditions. Certain skin infections or illnesses, like serious burns, shouldn’t be treated with this medication.
How long does amcinonide stay in your system?
The amount of time that amcinonide stays in your system is dependent on the duration of use of the medicine. Some research suggests that suppression of cortisol levels is still apparent 96 hours after topical use of corticosteroid creams, which implies that amcinonide can stay in your system for long periods of time, possibly for up to a few weeks. Amcinonide is not recommended for long term use. More research is required about the half-life of amcinonide and how long it stays in your system.
According to the NHS, for people who use amcinonide for extended periods of time (more than 12 months in adults), a withdrawal reaction may occur which can include:
- redness or changes in skin color (hyperpigmentation)
- burning, stinging, itching or peeling of the skin, or oozing, open sores
What are the side effects of amcinonide?
According to Mayo Clinic, use of amcinonide can have side effects. Check with your doctor immediately if any of the following side effects occur:
- Blistering, burning, crusting, dryness, or flaking of the skin
- irritation
- itching, scaling, severe redness, soreness, or swelling of the skin
- redness and scaling around the mouth
- thinning of the skin with easy bruising, especially when used on the face or where the skin folds together (e.g. between the fingers)
- Acne or pimples
- burning and itching of the skin with pinhead-sized red blisters
- burning, itching, and pain in hairy areas, or pus at the root of the hair
- increased hair growth on the forehead, back, arms, and legs
- lightening of normal skin color
- lightening of treated areas of dark skin
- reddish purple lines on the arms, face, legs, trunk, or groin
- softening of the skin
Why does my skin burn when I apply amcinonide to my skin?
If your skin burns after applying amcinonide to your skin, you may have an allergic reaction to the steroid cream and your skin cannot tolerate it. Amcinonide also contains cetostearyl alcohol which may cause acute allergic reactions.
How do I taper down from using amcinonide?
To taper down from using amcinonide many doctors advise adjusting to using a weaker steroid cream over an extended period of time. This is commonly known as climbing down the topical steroid ladder.
Which steroid creams are weaker than amcinonide?
According to the Topical Steroid Potency Strength Chart, amcinonide is a high-potent topical steroid cream. Topical steroids that are weaker than amcinonide are as follows:
- Betamethasone dipropionate
- Augmented betamethasone dipropionate
- Desoximetasone
- Augmented Diflorasone diacetate
- Diflorasone diacetate
- Fluocinonide
- Halcinonide
- Mometasone furoate
- Fluticasone propionate
- Triamcinolone acetonide 0.5%
- Betamethasone valerate
- Fluocinolone acetonide
- Flurandrenolide
- Hydrocortisone valerate
- Triamcinolone acetonide
- Betamethasone valerate 0.1%
- Clocortolone pivalate
- Fluticasone propionate
- Flurandrenolide
- Hydrocortisone butyrate
- Hydrocortisone probutate
- Hydrocortisone valerate 0.2%
- Prednicarbate
- Alclometasone dipropionate
- Desonide 0.05%
- Hydrocortisone 0.5% – 2.5%
- Hydrocortisone
Which steroid creams are stronger than amcinonide?
These topical steroid creams are stronger than amcinonide:
- Augmented betamethasone dipropionate
- Clobetasol propionate
- Desoximetasone
- Augmented diflorasone diacetate
- Diflorasone diacetate
- Fluocinonide
- Flurandrenolide 4 mcg/cm2
- Halobetasol propionate
What happens when you use amcinonide too often?
If you use amcinonide too frequently or for an extended period of time, tolerance or tachyphylaxis to that potency level of steroid cream may develop. Amcinonide is not recommended for extended use which may result in some of the common side effects listed above. Consult with your doctor if you have concerns.
Does amcinonide cause topical steroid withdrawal?
More research is required to understand the complexity of Topical Steroid Withdrawal and its specific connection to amcinonide. Amcinonide is a highly potent corticosteroid commonly used for skin conditions and the side effects of discontinuing the use of this topical steroid medicine is yet to be studied.
Throughout online groups and communities, there are serious concerns, accounts, discussions and images about corticosteroid creams (not just amcinonide) causing Topical Steroid Withdrawal. The accounts and experiences of the Topical Steroid Withdrawal community continues to grow and has gathered media wide attention for the aesthetic physical severity of many suffering.
Topical Steroid Withdrawal is an iatrogenic health phenomena that requires more research and studies. The International Topical Steroid Awareness Network (ITSAN) is currently building a patient registry to begin preliminary studies.
Is there treatment for Topical Steroid Withdrawal?
Currently, there is no global protocol or medical treatment for topical steroid withdrawal. At TSW Assist, we are identifying crowd sourced insights of products, routines, and therapies that can help manage the inflammation and symptoms during the withdrawal period from topical steroids. Currently, there is no quick cure for Topical Steroid Withdrawal.
Through the community, we are finding insights of the management of the symptoms of TSW, through the tracking of the efficacy of specific products, methods and therapies.
Disclaimer: The information on this website is not medical advice. There is no known medical cure for topical steroid withdrawal, but there are collective methods to manage the symptom and inflammation during the withdrawal period. It should not be mistaken that all usage of steroid creams will cause topical steroid withdrawal. More clinical research is required to understand the cause of Topical Steroid Withdrawal within an individual.
