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From: flowers@ucla-cs.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.med
Subject: Re: (antibiotics) legal?
Message-ID: <9662@ucla-cs.ARPA>
Date: Wed, 5-Mar-86 23:06:45 EST
Article-I.D.: ucla-cs.9662
Posted: Wed Mar  5 23:06:45 1986
Date-Received: Sat, 8-Mar-86 05:03:35 EST
References: <156@proper.UUCP> <12057@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU> <915@felix.UUCP> <22@spdcc.UUCP> <1425@osu-eddie.UUCP>
Reply-To: flowers@ucla-cs.UUCP (Margot Flowers)
Organization: UCLA Computer Science Department
Lines: 37

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In article <1425@osu-eddie.UUCP> mdf@osu-eddie.UUCP (Mark D. Freeman) writes:
>Summary:
>
>In <22@spdcc.UUCP> dyer@spdcc.UUCP (Steve Dyer) writes:
>>        ... The decision
>>        to embark on antibiotic therapy comes from a consideration of
>>        the condition of the patient, an identification of the organisms
>>        involved and their susceptibility to the antibiotic, a clinical
>>        judgement as to whether or not antibiotics would effect the course
>>        of the condition, and an assessment of the possible side effects
>>        relative to the seriousness of the patient's condition.
>
>In the dozens of times that my friends and I have had cause to seek help from
>members of the medical profession with infections of various sorts, not one
>of these doctors has EVER done or ordered a sensitivity test on a culture of
>the little beasties causing the problem.  Therefore, we have all spent
>between 3 weeks and 3 months playing 'musical antibiotics' with the doctor
>until, purely by accident, he/she eventually stumbles upon the correct one
>to prescribe.  The money spent for the useless drugs and office visits doesn't
>bug me half as much as having non-specific urethritis for 3 months, when it
>could have been fixed up in 2 weeks.
>
>Is there some legitimate reason why doctors will not have such a sensitivity
>test performed?  Most of the doctors I have gone to say that it isn't worth
>the time and expense to the patient, but I have NEVER seen a case where the
>correct antibiotic was prescribed the first time.

Sounds like some problem with the doctors you have gone to.  With
the exception of ear infections, and an episode in my youth, I have
never had antibiotics without first a culture.  This is across a number
of different medical services (including some in the "third world").

The exception in my youth illustrates the problem:  I spent an entire  year
unable to breath through my nose due to a sinus infection, playing
musical antibiotics, and never having a culture.  I remember sitting
for long periods of time in the office while the Dr. scrutinized the
PDR trying to find something else to try.