viral or bacterial?
 

This morning when I woke up one of my eyes was glued shut. Oh, wonderful, conjunctivitis, I thought, and after ungluing it was surprised to find that it wasn't all that swollen and there is no photophobia. Then the GI symptoms kicked in.

So, since we were already one short at the program, off I went to work, half loaded on codeine. Instead of going home later like any sane person, I hung out because we were having a Christmas party for the patients that I felt somewhat responsible to be present for. The febrile-type symptoms really started up around 11 AM, and persisted until well after I went home (didn't leave 'til 4:30) and spent the evening in a coma.

Now both eyes are draining discharge and I still have a temp well over 38, still feel like death. GI symptoms are quiescent, but after this morning I have wisely eaten nothing beyond water, a cookie, half a banana, and some hot lemon relief.

My question is, would you say it's viral or bacterial? A peer figured viral this AM... so I didn't get any antibiotics.

You're the doctor ferfuxsake.

Viral, for sure.

But if you see any puss or have excessive unexpelled snot for more than 7 days, get some antibiotics.

We humans are disgusting, aren't we?

Eyes and gastro. I think it's that thing you get from eating under cooked pork. Q fever??

If you're seeing any puss, Zen will want to see too.

Trichinosis.

What she said.

I had flu last year and stubborned it out. "It's viral," I kept telling everyone. "Antibiotics are useless."

What I wasn't counting on were the secondary bacterial infections of the sinuses. I suffered for two weeks, finally broke down and saw the docs, got antibios and was better in two days.

So, what Marge said. If it seems to be hanging around longer than a week, try antibiotics.

p.s. get better soon.

Not freaking trichinosis!

I reckon Dengue gives you sore eyes too.

And I am sorry, but I am supposed to be on skis at Marmot basin in a week. I have exactly one more day that I can drag my ass around. Then I need to be better.

I thought viral too, but the eyes could be bacterial, in which case I am a real dipshit for not sucking up some antibiotics.

Years of admin in psychiatry have ill prepared me for TRICHINOSIS!

In either case, unless you have mitigating circumstances, a course of anti-biotics would not hurt.

Let us all remember that there are people in the world who don't have any snow at all. I would chug ampicillin for that. And me + sulfur = adrenaline. To quote "nuff said".

I beg to differ.

Overuse or misuse of antibiotics hurts ALL OF US, because those nasty little bacteria learn very quickly how to mutate to avoid antibiotics, and the more we take antibiotics, the better they become at mutating.

There are already plenty of icky things out there we have no antibiotics for. Let's not increase them.

Don't worry, I am appropriately in tune with "Do bugs need drugs?" However, there comes a point where you're only being dim by denying yourself antibiotic treatment to a bacterially-created infection. Smartest thing to do would be to swab the eyes and find out for sure, but I'd likely get the results back much faster if I went to my vet.

Well when y'all are done trying to figure out Trish's freak problem I might throw something out there for all you health people to figure out. My nurse practitioner can't figure it out and she doesn't even know who to send me to. *shrugs*

I gave my mediocre, off landish advice to Trish already so I won't make an ass of myself out in the open. . . although that isn't hard. ;)