Can I put this in my body? (expired medicine edition)

August 19, 2015 9:20 AM

I feel an outer ear infection coming on. I have some antibiotic spray left from the last time I had one (May, I think). The bottle says that it shouldn't be used more than a month after the first time it was opened. Can I use it to pre-empt the infection anyway?

My symptoms and symptom progression are identical to the last time I had an ear infection (earlier this year) - the ear canal is tender and sore, it feels warm, and there's also some tenderness and swelling in the eustachian tube. Right now it's at the hurts-a-bit-to-touch, low-level-awareness-that-something's-not-right-over-there stage. Last time it got so bad that I couldn't sleep because of the pain, and spread to the other ear. I would like for that not to happen again.

My #1 preferred course of action would be to squirt the stuff I already have in there and see if that brings the infection down. I don't like doctors (see: how it got so bad last time) and would strongly prefer not to have to see one for this, but there's nothing about my job situation/finances/access to healthcare that would make it impossible if I needed to - it's purely social & emotional discomfort and general inconvenience that I'm keen to avoid.

I swing quite far towards the "yes I would eat that" end of the gross stuff spectrum, so I've got no inherent issues with squirting some expired medicine in my ear. I also tend to assume that most use-by dates are extremely conservative, to the point of being essentially arbitrary.

I've read the thread on expired Zithromax, and I'm totally happy with the advice there in principle, but I'm not sure if the fact that this is a liquid solution changes things.

I'm interested to hear any reasons why this is a bad idea based on the specifics of the situation/liquid solution (e.g. because liquid antibiotics get denatured/useless a lot more quickly than antibiotics in pill form, or because I run the risk of specific bad things happening if I put this expired goop in my ear).

I'm considerably less interested in answers along the lines of "don't use expired medicines because expired medicines" and other stuff that's not backed up by science/research/sound reasoning.

Thanks!

posted by terretu to Health & Fitness (5 answers total)

I'd be much more concerned that you didn't have enough for a full course, or that you didn't finish the full course of antibiotics last time.

Not completing ALL of the prescribed doses is what leads to antibiotic resistant infections.
posted by builderofscience at 9:34 AM on August 19, 2015 [15 favorites]

I would probably start using the expired spray right away (it's only been since may! that seems totally okay to me) but I would also make an appointment to see an ENT as soon as possible.
posted by poffin boffin at 9:35 AM on August 19, 2015

IANAD, but I would have no issues taking it. In most cases "expired" drugs just lose their efficacy and don't turn toxic.
posted by mkultra at 9:44 AM on August 19, 2015

from here:

[in general it's ok to use out of date medicines.]

A Special Note About Expired Antibiotics

You should not keep expired antibiotics to use at a later date. However, the reason has less to do with the expiration date and more to do with how antibiotics work.

For example, let’s say you have 4 or 5 antibiotic pills left from an older prescription, and you’re thinking that you should keep them and take them later if you start feeling sick again over the winter. This is not a good idea for a number of reasons:

Doing so could actually help the bacteria become more drug resistant.
A few leftover antibiotic pills are not enough to rid the bacteria from your body.
You would be self-diagnosing which can be very dangerous. What you think is a bacterial infection requiring antibiotics (because the symptoms are similar to what you had before) may in fact be a viral infection that antibiotics will do absolutely nothing for.

Therefore, when it comes to expired antibiotics, you should always dispose of any leftover pills or liquid antibiotic prescriptions — regardless of the date on the packaging. Antibiotics are one expired medication you don’t want to mess with.

posted by andrewcooke at 9:49 AM on August 19, 2015 [7 favorites]

I'm a doctor, so of course I think you should see your doctor to ensure you've got the diagnosis right (we don't bite!). However, you don't have to use a prescription to treat swimmer's ear.

You will notice the 3rd ingredient in your Otomize is acetic acid - commonly known as vinegar. Vinegar rinses alone are also a treatment for otitis externa - see link for treatment instructions.
posted by treehorn+bunny at 11:33 AM on August 19, 2015 [4 favorites]