One week of IV antibiotics, that is.
Interestingly, it seems the bugs are mutating into a vanco resistant form, so yesterday we changed to Invanz (ertapenem).
My system didn't seem to like the change. I had some nausea and vomiting, hot flashes, racing heartbeat, etc. I toughed it out and those things gradually subsided and I actually ended up sleeping pretty well. I've just returned from the second infusion and so far so good. We'll see how it goes.
As for the bugs developing resistance, well, that's just what bugs do. There are untold millions of them and their individual life cycles are short. When they're entrenched within the bone where it's hard for the antibiotic to reach, new generations inevitably develop resistance. That's nature at work, and nature doesn't give a flying firetruck about human fads, politics or ideologies. Treating this kind of infection is battle, and as the bugs change tactics, so must the docs and pharmacologists.
One thing the vanco did for sure is hammer the infection in the soft tissue. That abscess is clearing up nicely.
All in all I'm confident that we're on the right path. It'll take time, and this isn't the most fun I've ever had, but it's just what it is. On the bright side I'm getting a lot of practice at being a good patient!
The other day I came across this excellent cartoon by Maki Naro, and I thought I'd share it here. It's a very good message about the differences between reality and fantastic ideology. Though this deals directly with vaccinations, the underlying message is the same when it comes to antibiotics and resistant pathogens. Think of it as public service ad. More later.
It appears to be a plague. Plagues are always, eventually, self-limiting though.
ReplyDeleteyou went a little long there my friend.
ReplyDeleteVaccines.I got bitten by a bat last month. They are a sure and certain vector for rabies.
I was talking to a couple we are friends with and mentioned going to the hospital for to get the whole series of vaccine which still requires 5 vists and lots of shots and the woman I was talking to didn't quite understand the whyness. She thought you could survive rabies and she thought I was kidding when I told her it was universally fatal without the vaccine.
I have stored a picture somewhere in these bytes of the old days which, were my childhood. it is a nurse standing by a four stack of iron lungs with young children in them with just their heads poking out and polio had made that their fate.
I lived for decades around the place of Jonas Salk and listened to NPR people denigrate him and yet.....well, you kow.
The human capacity for malignant stupidity is breathtaking.
DeleteAnother excellent post. In the 2014 map, I can see where there would be a problem in Madison, Madison is a very green, no man made medicine place, even with UW Hospital, but I wonder what the deal is with Rockford, just below? Or did they misplace Milwaukee and Chicago?
ReplyDeleteThere is a belief among certain people, that vaccines are designed to kill off the Black community. So, I can see that happening in Milwaukee, and Chicago.
There used to be a great (I think Disney) cartoon about vaccination which we all had to watch annually in school. probably not PC so not shown now. Another thought is that some of the rise in formerly extinct diseases (e.g whooping cough and measles) is due to unvaccinated (and illegal) aliens amongst us--though I have not actually seen hard data supporting this. Hope your treatment regime changes gets you up and well in a trice.
ReplyDelete