Infection?

[RefinedHeroine]

I have little tiny red dots on my hands after shooting up last night. They aren't warm/hot, I have a slight fever, and my hands hurt badly. I have pneumonia so I am on antibiotics....just finished the z-pack today (Azithromycin) I should be OK, right? I'm using warm compresses, aloe vera, and keeping the sites clean.

 

[T. Calderone]

I would keep an eye on this since you have a fever and bad pain. The red dots are probably histamine reaction but if your symptoms don't improve, you should get medical attention. (Homeless -------- > BDD)


edit: you might find this thread helpful:

http://www.bluelight.org/vb/threads...EGATHREAD-amp-FAQ-IV-Vs-Flashes-Flags-Ribbons

 

[fermonos]

If you are from a country with hospital care, like the UK. Then just go to the doctors or even A&E. Better to be safe than sorry.

If you're from North America, then you'll just have to monitor yourself. Keep it sanitised with some handwash with 99% alcohol in it and covered with a bandage.

 

[Keif' Richards]

^Come on, that's not true. Any warm body is required by law in both the United States in Canada to receive life-saving care like the delivery of a baby or the treatment of an infection, even if it's self-inflicted. OP, don't ever have the attitude that medical treatment is totally unavailable to you, because it's not. Truthfully, they'll treat you for a lot of other shit short of actual life-saving treatment in most cases, but not all.

My advice would be to find a way to get some medical advice regarding your situation if it doesn't improve or gets worse. While it's true that oral antibiotics would be probably be the first-line treatment for this sort of thing, not all antibiotics are ideally suited for every instance of infection. Certain antibiotics exert a stronger influence on certain specific bacteria, which could potentially involve your physician prescribing a different course of antibiotics to treat your injection complication.

Also, alcohol is great if you don't have access to soap and running water i.e. out on the street, but the ideal situation would be that, to use soap and warm water to clean the site. Not nitpicking, that's just HR stuff. Anything that can help minimize complications is great.

 

[fermonos]

Wait, I thought you get huge medical bills? Regardless if it's life saving or not? Now I'm not saying they won't treat him, I'm just saying even if he was worried and ended up going to the ER room, if it was just something minor and they treated him he would end up with a huge bill?

 

[Keif' Richards]

You're totally right. A trip to the Emergency Department in my state will run you approximately $900. It could be more and it could be less depending on what is required from the visit. We could discuss the intricacies and failings of our health system for a long time and I'd enjoy it, too, but the deal is essentially this. Those that lack health insurance in this country, as I've said, can be treated regardless of financial ability. They are then stuck with a bill for a large amount of money, which typically isn't ever paid. The financial burden is then divvied out among the respective parties; the hospital itself, the state, the feds and the individual taxpayer cover the cost. This is essentially an ad hoc system for universal health care.

If you want to pay the ER $900 for a 30 minute visit and a piece of paper (prescription) that's your perogative, but you really don't have to. The hospital will not steal food off your table. They won't garnish your wages. They won't throw you in a debtor's prison. The wheel goes round and round, which is the beatuy and misery of American health care.

Would you sacrifice an arm to avoid paying a hospital bill, at a later (possibly never) date? We really shouldn't be putting the idea into people's heads that they should feel even more insecure about seeking medical attention. There could be consequences.