You mean I have to take ALL the pills?
July 21, 2011 8:16 PM Subscribe
I was prescribed a shot (some broadspectrum antibiotic that hurt really bad) and pills: 500mg Keflex 4x/day for 10 days. This was to treat a pubic boil. My compliance has sucked to say the least. I try hard to remember but I'm not doing well with it. I've taken 11 pills out of 40. I should have taken 35 pills by now. Am I hurting myself? Should I continue taking them? I have a message into my doc to fess up to my slackitude.
p.s. if I were you, I would continue taking it until I heard back from the doctor, but also, I would be sure to speak to them asap, like tomorrow a.m.
posted by Tandem Affinity at 8:39 PM on July 21, 2011
posted by Tandem Affinity at 8:39 PM on July 21, 2011
From the Mayo Clinic on missed doses (the basis for my advice to continue taking, but also as it points out here, don't double up to take any of the doses you've missed!):
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/drug-information/DR603067/DSECTION=proper-use
posted by Tandem Affinity at 8:41 PM on July 21, 2011
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/drug-information/DR603067/DSECTION=proper-use
posted by Tandem Affinity at 8:41 PM on July 21, 2011
It is really bad to not take a full course of antibiotics. If you have an infection, the infection could become antibiotic resistant if you are not taking them regularly and become much worse than what you started out with.
I would call the doctor tomorrow to see what they want you to do about it.
posted by TheBones at 8:42 PM on July 21, 2011 [2 favorites]
I would call the doctor tomorrow to see what they want you to do about it.
posted by TheBones at 8:42 PM on July 21, 2011 [2 favorites]
I'm going to go with yes.
I've had boils that were insanely painful (in the joint, actually, damn near on the scrotum itself) and my doctor has a tendency to be very conservative in this: he did not, in fact, lance the boil, but gave me antibiotics, warm compresses, lots of baths. It vented normally (I had to borrow some towels from a friend who was driving me somewhere in order to not mess his seats up), and stunk to high heaven. But the recovery was swift - and my doctor told me that it was the antibiotics both got helped with the quick emptying as well as the quick healing.
(A previous one vented early, and I proceeded to get a skin-level staph infection that laid me out for four days with a fever before the antibiotics took hold and got me upright again.)
Call the doctor, and then do what you need to so that you remember. Set alarms on your phone, whatever it takes.
posted by mephron at 8:45 PM on July 21, 2011
I've had boils that were insanely painful (in the joint, actually, damn near on the scrotum itself) and my doctor has a tendency to be very conservative in this: he did not, in fact, lance the boil, but gave me antibiotics, warm compresses, lots of baths. It vented normally (I had to borrow some towels from a friend who was driving me somewhere in order to not mess his seats up), and stunk to high heaven. But the recovery was swift - and my doctor told me that it was the antibiotics both got helped with the quick emptying as well as the quick healing.
(A previous one vented early, and I proceeded to get a skin-level staph infection that laid me out for four days with a fever before the antibiotics took hold and got me upright again.)
Call the doctor, and then do what you need to so that you remember. Set alarms on your phone, whatever it takes.
posted by mephron at 8:45 PM on July 21, 2011
Nthing calling the doc. They might be able to put you on something that doesn't require four doses a day. Do you have a cell phone with a calendar or alarm clock? You can program it to go off at the prescribed times and remind you.
You really, really want to stick to the plan in order to keep the boil from coming back.
posted by corey flood at 8:47 PM on July 21, 2011
You really, really want to stick to the plan in order to keep the boil from coming back.
posted by corey flood at 8:47 PM on July 21, 2011
You could also call your pharmacist while you're waiting for your doctor to return your call.
posted by Wordwoman at 10:04 PM on July 21, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Wordwoman at 10:04 PM on July 21, 2011 [1 favorite]
Do not make up what you missed.
Start again with the prescribed schedule as if you just started. Keflex is a brand name cephalosporin/cephalexin. Decent broad spectrum antibiotic with little side effects (mostly GI because of it's broad spectrum).
Tell the doc, they might give you en extra week or two. Finish your prescription as if you are just starting. If the boil goes away before the antibiotics are done, keep eating the pills until you're out of pills. If the boil is still there... you'll need to either go on more of the same antibiotic, try a different antibiotic, try a non-antibiotic antimicrobial in case you were misdiagnosed and it's a fungal infection instead, &c.
Eat the pills as if you're just starting again. See doctor, tell them the situation, eat more pills. Worse comes to worst, you'll have to eat a bunch of other pills on a schedule for a few weeks.
I've been misdiagnosed by a GP for "groin-area-summer-problems" to stress/concern as well as drug money - perhaps finding a second opinion might not be a bad idea if you can afford it.
posted by porpoise at 11:05 PM on July 21, 2011
Start again with the prescribed schedule as if you just started. Keflex is a brand name cephalosporin/cephalexin. Decent broad spectrum antibiotic with little side effects (mostly GI because of it's broad spectrum).
Tell the doc, they might give you en extra week or two. Finish your prescription as if you are just starting. If the boil goes away before the antibiotics are done, keep eating the pills until you're out of pills. If the boil is still there... you'll need to either go on more of the same antibiotic, try a different antibiotic, try a non-antibiotic antimicrobial in case you were misdiagnosed and it's a fungal infection instead, &c.
Eat the pills as if you're just starting again. See doctor, tell them the situation, eat more pills. Worse comes to worst, you'll have to eat a bunch of other pills on a schedule for a few weeks.
I've been misdiagnosed by a GP for "groin-area-summer-problems" to stress/concern as well as drug money - perhaps finding a second opinion might not be a bad idea if you can afford it.
posted by porpoise at 11:05 PM on July 21, 2011
Set an alarm on your cellphone, or computer, or even get google calender to instant message you on your cellphone to remind you to take it.
Also, put a day or two's worth in your wallet, your bag, any other bag you use, and right next you bed where you'll see them when you get up. Have them everywhere! Easy not to forget!
posted by Elysum at 11:20 PM on July 21, 2011 [1 favorite]
Also, put a day or two's worth in your wallet, your bag, any other bag you use, and right next you bed where you'll see them when you get up. Have them everywhere! Easy not to forget!
posted by Elysum at 11:20 PM on July 21, 2011 [1 favorite]
Bactrim or Doxycycline may be appropriate options. Both are dosed twice daily instead of 4 times. Keflex has better data and is used far more commonly for these types of skin infections, but they would likely work. Ask your Doc.
- Pharmacist who likes infectious diseases
posted by jjbb at 3:21 AM on July 22, 2011
- Pharmacist who likes infectious diseases
posted by jjbb at 3:21 AM on July 22, 2011
Good lord, yes, you are hurting yourself by not following this! Not only do you want to get better, but you certainly don"t want to get worse, right? Your body may be building up a resistance to the antibiotic now because you've given it too much time to adapt to each dose.
So, to remember to take them, you could try associating taking pills with meals and with brushing your teeth and take them then--even if you only eat two meals a day, that will keep you covered.
Or you can also put alerts on your phone or computer to remind you. I have done this.
Another option might be asking your doctor if an Azithromycin five-day regimen would work at this point. It's much easier to stick to because you take fewer pills as the days go by, and it's a good strong antibiotic.
Look, I know it's a pain to take pills. I have to take six a day, every day, and probably will for the rest of my life, and one of them requires me to get a new Rx from my doctor every single month, and another I do bloodwork for 4x a year, and I can't eat for at least an hour after some, or drink juice after others and then there's this big freaking pill I just hate that could choke a horse.
Thinking about all that is depressing, though, so I try to set my life up so I don't have to think about my pills at all. Instead, I've just made taking them another daily routine like showering or brushing my teeth, no biggie, and keep going.
posted by misha at 9:37 AM on July 22, 2011
So, to remember to take them, you could try associating taking pills with meals and with brushing your teeth and take them then--even if you only eat two meals a day, that will keep you covered.
Or you can also put alerts on your phone or computer to remind you. I have done this.
Another option might be asking your doctor if an Azithromycin five-day regimen would work at this point. It's much easier to stick to because you take fewer pills as the days go by, and it's a good strong antibiotic.
Look, I know it's a pain to take pills. I have to take six a day, every day, and probably will for the rest of my life, and one of them requires me to get a new Rx from my doctor every single month, and another I do bloodwork for 4x a year, and I can't eat for at least an hour after some, or drink juice after others and then there's this big freaking pill I just hate that could choke a horse.
Thinking about all that is depressing, though, so I try to set my life up so I don't have to think about my pills at all. Instead, I've just made taking them another daily routine like showering or brushing my teeth, no biggie, and keep going.
posted by misha at 9:37 AM on July 22, 2011
Yes, you are hurting yourself by not taking the pills on the prescribed schedule. This matters. Tell your doctor, then figure out a way to do better. Your future self thanks you.
posted by Corvid at 3:15 PM on July 22, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Corvid at 3:15 PM on July 22, 2011 [1 favorite]
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And even if it doesn't come back right away....it could linger at a low level and revive again later. So let them know. Maybe they can help with the reason why you had difficulty complying (too many pills, made you sick, whatever it was...)
ANd of course, I'm not a doctor or your doctor, I just use antibiotics in the lab....(and I don't use Keflex..)
posted by Tandem Affinity at 8:36 PM on July 21, 2011 [4 favorites]