Flucloxacillin- To eat, or not to eat?

[ZeldaG.]

Hi

Last night i got some glass deep in my finger, where i coldnt pull it out myself, so i went down to A&E got it X-rayed, then they totally numbed it down, so i coudlnt feel a thing like the doctor was cutting my finger apart and snipping bits out lol and then looking for the glass and i couldnt feel anything!!

It was really amazing! :D

Then thye stiched it up and sent me home with some Ibuprofen (pain killer) and an anti-biotic called: Flucloxacillin.

Now i aint sure but it has soemthing to do wiht infections and stuff...

But i was wondering, do i really need to take it, cos i feel iffy about tablets (i can swallow them no problem, its just that tablets are iffy and i dont like them)

Now i aint taking Ibuprofen, cos i dont need pain killers but i aint sure if i should take the flucloxacillin? will it cuase problems if i dont take it?

will my figner fall off? :wtf:

Thank you for any advise...

[birdgirl73]

If it helps reassure you, the ibuprofen isn't a narcotic pain killer. It's what's known as a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug. It'll help reduce the swelling and inflammation in that finger, which'll help it heal, and will help relieve the pain in the process. It's a good drug for you to consider taking, especially after having had glass extracted and stitches because the inevitable swelling pulls on those stitches.

The floxacillin (aka flucloxacillin) is an antibiotic in the penicillin family. I'm not sure what the circumstances were under which you got that glass in your finger, but you've not only had that happen, you've now also been to an emergency clinic to have the glass extracted and get stitches. There's a good chance somewhere along the way you picked up some bacteria, either when you cut yourself in the first place or at the clinic where they cleaned your finger out. So they've prescribed antibiotics to reduce the chance of your getting an infection or to kill one out if it's already taken hold. If you picked an infection up at the clinic, it's likely to be a bad one. If I were you, I'd take that medicine, too.

The risk is not of your finger falling off. The risk is that you've had an open wound that's now been stitched up. If you have an infection starting in a recently stitched wound, that's likely to be a deep infection that's essentially sealed in there under the stitches. An infection in a stitched wound will not only keep your finger from healing, it could also infect the whole area or hand. And if it got out of control, which can happen fast, what'd end up happening is that you'd have to go into the hospital, have that wound re-opened, cleaned out much more deeply (and possibly with surgery) and then be put on even heavier doses of IV antibiotics. If it's a staph infection or something equally bad, things'd be even worse.

That's why they prescribed the floxacillin--to keep things from getting that bad. Yes, doctors over-prescribe antibiotics and they're not always called for. But in this case, they did what's standard and a good idea, especially with a wound that's been sewn shut, closing in any bacteria that may have gotten in. Think about taking that medicine, too, and take it exactly as it was prescribed, without stopping it before you've finished the complete course.

[ZeldaG.]

Thank you very much bird girl, i was so relieved to see that you had answered.

I was joking about the finger fallin off :p , But basically i just wanted to iknow what hte fluclox... is for.

so thank you i will take it,

I have smoked weed but as far as i know that dont affect anti-biotics?

lol i am just a bit paranoid about them...

thank you...


ps: also i have just eaten, it says to take hour before food or on an empty stomach?? why?? i thout thta was bad for your stomach... :S

[birdgirl73]

Depends on the antibiotic. Some at better taken with food because they can upset your stomach. Some work more effectively and are absorbed better when they're taken without food. This must be one of those. They're not bad on your stomach necessarily, although after you've taken them for a few days they can kill out some of the beneficial bacteria in your gut (that doesn't always happen). The pharmacy probably knows that this one works best and gets absorbed better when you take it without food.

One of the things about many foods, like milk and yogurt and cheese, is that they contain micro-organisms (good ones, nothing dangerous in most cases), and so when you take certain antibiotics with those foods, the antibiotic will go to work trying to fight the naturally occurring bacteria in food instead of on your infection. Many of the penicillins are notorious for doing that, which is why they've told you to take your medicine separately.

[ZeldaG.]

thanks so much again.

I would give you rep but it doesnt let me... :(

I read the side effects and they freaked me out even more :S lol some scary stuff on there...

lol but i took two now and havnt experienced any yet so its all good :D

thanks.

[birdgirl73]

You're welcome, hun. Yeah, it's always best not to read those side-effects. If you're like me, you'll read those and begin to have them right after the reading! Hope your finger heals up fast!