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A short compendium of messages: > > > She was covered in spots, and very cross. Personally I think I > > > would have given her the Acyclovir to start with. > > > > You cannot be serious! (McEnroe,J, Wimbledon 198? - can't remember). > > Spending over UKP100 to treat spots and a flu-like illness in a non > > immune compromised healthy adult would have been an immoral waste of > > money. > > How about a cost/morals analysis? Immoral at 10 pounds for a large > improvement in comfort? Immoral at 1000 pounds for no benefit? Where > would the crossover point at which this would be a treatment we might > reasonably offer the people who are in fact paying for it? > > > I believe there have been several deaths in the UK from chickenpox > > in immunocompetent adults in recent years. It is therefore > > considered prudent to use acyclovir unless you know your patient > > will be OK. And, of course, we have a duty to society as well as the individual. Is anyone aware of the incidence of resistance to these drugs? Will drug resistance become a greater problem if we prescribe for every identified case? You will all be aware of the doom-mongers who declare that if we carry on with our current indiscriminate behaviour we shall have no effective anti-infectious drugs left to use in 10 - 20 years time. Just a thought. Trims. ________________________________________________________________________ Dr Ian Trimble email: [log in to unmask] Sherwood Health Centre Elmswood Gardens Tel: +44 115 962 4516 Nottingham NG5 4AD Fax: +44 115 985 7899 ________________________________________________________________________ %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%