Anyhow only!

Spud has, unfortunately, had another flare up of eczema a week after the red, angry rashes invaded her face. They did not seem to want to go away anytime soon, with the rashes spreading to her chest and neck. It was so disheartening to have to witness her discomfort whenever the rashes flared up. Day after day. Night after night. And, neither do we intend to prolong the use of the prescribed steroid cream.

Hence, off we went to see a Pediatrician again last week, requesting for yet a different one this time. As an allergist, the doctor went on to say that she could be allergic to the food I’ve been eating and advised me to stay off dairy product namely milk (which I don’t consume as I am lactose intolerant), eggs, chocolate and wheat. Obviously, as an allergist, his professional opinion was that pets are usually the #1 culprit of an allergy. Considering we have 3 cats, I reckon, it is always so easy for doctors and people alike to blame us for exposing Spud to our resident cats and that we should be getting rid of them. Fortunately, he did not impose his opinion against having pets on us, and went on to prescribe some medication.

I have to say, having a kaypo husband who wants to know everything is really a blessing. With Silver Bullet, he always makes it a point to thoroughly check on every single medication prescribed by any doctors here. It turned out to be a smart thing to do as. Apart from prescribing antihistamine syrup (Zyrtec) and a Eucerin cleansing lotion, he also prescribed Spud with an alternative to steroid cream, called Protopic. Now, what the doctor told us about this very cream was that it is for long-term usage. Also, one does not have to worry if the cream gets into contact with the eyes or mouth,; and when we asked, we were told that the cream is definitely suitable for a then 7 week old infant. I wondered later if he had meant that for a different type of cream or if the pharmacist had accidentally fished out the wrong cream because, the leaflet that came with the cream said otherwise.

As we probed further into the medication, it appears that Protopic should only be used as a last resort. Under no uncertain terms should the drug be used on a child below 2 years old. Furthermore, the drug comes with a black box warning! The more we read about it, the scarier it became. Spud does not even have a severe case of eczema! Truly, we both were glad that we did not apply the cream on her too fast, too soon.

One really has to question the doctors’ practice here all.the.time. It pays to be an informed patient here in Thailand since the doctors in this country have the tendency to so easily prescribe you with antibiotics for every known common ailment there is when there isn’t a need too!

We have had it. We are switching hospital and finding a new Pediatrician for Spud.

As we Singaporeans like to say: How can anyhow only prescribe medication to baby like that? So dangerous one. Anyhow only! Next time cannot anyhow trust.

Scary or what!