The other day I went to the doctors and saw the triage nurse to ask for some antibiotics to sort out the infection in my gum.
I know I’ve got an infection in my gum because I had it about a month and a half ago and I know I need some antibiotics because that’s what the dentist prescribed me last time. But could I get a doctor to give me a prescription? Could I bollocks.
The nurse looked at my gum and agreed that it was red and looked infected. She went and talked to a doctor but the answer from the doctor was “take ibuprofen and if it gets worse go to the dentist”.
Doctors aren’t dentists and I accept that but they are capable of diagnosing an infected gum, just as they are capable of diagnosing an infection anywhere else in the body. There is no reason why I should have to pay to spend two minutes in the dentists chair just to get a bloody prescription for some antibiotics.
In case you’re wondering, it’s getting better now after 3 or 4 days of pain and enough ibuprofen and paracetamol to sedate a bull elephant.
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so, it got better by itself?
Too many anti biotics are not good for you
It’s getting better, it still hurts all the time. A dose or two of antibiotics once every few years is better for you than a week of painkillers.
could it be an abscess?
Shouldn’t think so. It was in the top before, now it’s more on the bottom.
Doctors are advised these days not to issue antibiotics unless completely necessary. Many of them are becoming ineffective because the wee beasties they are used to treat are building up a resistance to them. When you kill 99% of all known germs you leave the 1% to reproduce.
That’s why hospitals are having all that trouble with super bugs, over use of antibiotics combined with piss poor hygiene.
I realise that aint much consolation when you’re suffering but I’m afraid we’re in the twilight of the antibiotic wonder drug.