General Medical issues thread

prozac said:
Understood that, didn't comment, above my pay grade. :) Was just interested if regular donation meant you weren't blood letting for nothing. ;)
I carry one HFE gene and slightly raised iron which has never been an issue. I gave plasma for a while when I worked close to the blood bank.
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Ah, I think I understand what you mean (but your double negative ... :) ). I was never a blood donor until I had to have venesections, and then I was a semi-regular at the Red Cross. Funny thing though, because I was travelling so much, esp to the USA and Canada, I was usually in the 'blood and bone' camp (Lime disease). My African travels brought out the handbook of country issues pretty often. I saw the change in the Red Cross under Robert Tickner's CEO-ship from public service to corporate (attitude), which was pretty dismaying.
 
prozac said:
Now find a chemist who knows how to make it
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We don't use Eusol anymore for ulcer care.
Ill check with the Wound Care team on the current practice.

Basically ulcer care revolves around the principle of debridement
debridement can take several forms:
・biological (maggots)
・enzyme
・mechanical (surgical)
・chemical (eusol, peroxide,

A lot of ulcer care uses spray on enzymes.

From memory Eusol = chlorinated lime (calcium hypochlorite) + boric acid. Dr Google should have a recipe.
 
RooFlyer said:
Checked for coeliac a few years ago for another reason, negative. Can it develop more in later life
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I vaguely remember that maybe 20% of coeliacs get that diagnosis after retirement age.

RooFlyer said:
I saw the change in the Red Cross under Robert Tickner's CEO-ship from public service to corporate (attitude)
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You mean the Australian Red Cross blood bank?. I suspect Govt pressure on ARCBB to be less reliant on Govt funding?
 
Quickstatus said:
We don't use Eusol anymore for ulcer care.
Ill check with the Wound Care team on the current practice.

Basically ulcer care revolves around the principle of debridement
debridement can take several forms:
・biological (maggots)
・enzyme
・mechanical (surgical)
・chemical (eusol, peroxide,

A lot of ulcer care uses spray on enzymes.

From memory Eusol = chlorinated lime (calcium hypochlorite) + boric acid. Dr Google should have a recipe.
Click to expand...
We discussed maggots...it was a bit of a hole, all the way to the tibia. Bit black too. Mrsprozac had been complaining a few weeks when she came home and opened the front door, she'd call out "Your feet stink!" Wasn't my feet. Took 3 months until it filled back up with new flesh.
 
coriander said:
My office last night. Hb crashed to 5.5 which is apparently not good - ended up in Epworth ED. One unit blood last night, bone marrow biopsy and two more units of red cells/bloods today. Only 5 days to departure - haematologist committed and still determined to get me on a plane on Monday. She's highly regarded as a "serious force of nature" which is great to have someone like that on my side.View attachment 290800
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I missed you by a day! I went to Epworth ED on Monday afternoon with abdominal pain and was admitted to have my gall bladder out the next day. It was my first episode so quite unexpected.
 
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I'm not certain but think the worst has passed with cellulitis infection.

One more day of Amoxiclav to go, leg still swollen but mainly pain free. I'm not going to see doctor/hospital in Chiang Mai but I'm considering one more week of Amoxiclav.

Note leg has been very itchy the past few days and now quite a bit of skin is flaking/peeling off which I think is a sign that it's healing.

I was going to play golf tomorrow but will now wait until Friday.

Wife was telling me a sad story which puts some things into perspective. Someone in village recently had same issue. They did not know what it was and were using Tiger balm thinking it was a rash but infection was getting worse. They finally went to seek medical treatment but by then it was too late and died a few days later.
 
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JohnK said:
I'm not certain but think the worst has passed with cellulitis infection.

One more day of Amoxiclav to go, leg still swollen but mainly pain free. I'm not going to see doctor/hospital in Chiang Mai but I'm considering one more week of Amoxiclav.

Note leg has been very itchy the past few days and now quite a bit of skin is flaking/peeling off which I think is a sign that it's healing.

I was going to play golf tomorrow but will now wait until Friday.

Wife was telling me a sad story which puts some things into perspective. Someone in village recently had same issue. They did not know what it was and were using Tiger balm thinking it was a rash but infection was getting worse. They finally went to seek medical treatment but by then it was too late and died a few days later.
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Sad, yes. We've been telling you it is serious, hard to accept when you first start getting it, and hopefully you won't get it again. Don't count on it.
If it were me I'd go another course if there is still swelling. Had this many, many times, and on antibiotics on occasions for many months. Not because I have poor circulation or diabetes, etc, but because of underlying dormant infection. @JohnK, please don't underestimate cellulitis.
And what @Quickstatus said.
 
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prozac said:
I'd go another course if there is still swelling.
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"When will this get better?" is a common question from patients - an understandable impatience for things to get back to normal.
The best answer is "when it gets better"
Another one is "the tincture of time" - meaning that while medicine can cure, medicine and the body needs time which is a "how long is a piece of string scenario".
 
Quickstatus said:
"When will this get better?" is a common question from patients - an understandable impatience for things to get back to normal.
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An understandable question when talking to an expert (ie doctor) involved in their case.

Quickstatus said:
The best answer is "when it gets better"
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Best for the doctor or patient? I hope the patient isn't paying for that type of patronisation, when they could get the same type of answer from their Aunty Dot over a cup of tea..

Quickstatus said:
Another one is "the tincture of time" - meaning that while medicine can cure, medicine and the body needs time which is a "how long is a piece of string scenario"
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Another unhelpful reply for the patient but perhaps the doctor might admire his own cleverness. Trouble is, when doctors hang out their shingle, after many years of training and hopefully a number of years of experience in measuring string, its not unreasonable for a patient to think that they should be able to hazard a guess as to how long their own piece is.

If the doctor won't or can't answer the patient's question about their prognosis and path to wellness, then the doctor should just say "I don't know " and not some smart-alecky reply about tinctures.

Why the above fired-up? I went through this exact same type of BS today, from the surgeon who has left me with lingering pain after an operation. We got there in the end and an agreed plan and path for recovery with milestones and alternative therapies if the first doesn't work and perhaps more surgical intervention. I know it may not happen completely, but I wasn't going to let him wash his hands and push me out the door with "it happens, don't know why". [/rant]
 
prozac said:
Sad, yes. We've been telling you it is serious, hard to accept when you first start getting it, and hopefully you won't get it again. Don't count on it.
If it were me I'd go another course if there is still swelling. Had this many, many times, and on antibiotics on occasions for many months. Not because I have poor circulation or diabetes, etc, but because of underlying dormant infection. @JohnK, please don't underestimate cellulitis.
And what @Quickstatus said.
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I don't think I ever said it wasn't serious. I've had cellulitis once before and that one cleared quickly. This one has been stubborn. But then so have quite a few of my infections over the years.

I'm going to continue with antibiotics for another week. Would have been nice to also have another 3 days of antibiotic drip but it's not as easy here in Chiang mai.

@Quickstatus leg still swollen but nowhere near as much as last week. And as I mentioned hardly any pain so hopefully things looking up.
 

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