Unaccustomed As I Am To Whingeing (Honest!)...

[jansman]

My dentist was livid at the government attitude towards dentistry.He is Old School,and he can never stress enough about the seriousness of an infection.Dentistry is an important part of health care.My wife had a serious infection in April.All he could do was to prescribe Uber Antibiotics,as the Dental Hub would only do extraction.As it happens,the delayed treatment means that she still has to have it extracted.Had she been able to get treatment,he could have saved the tooth...

[redskies]

Hydrogen peroxide can be bought from a hairdressing / beauty wholesaler.

Boots & many other independent pharmacies also sell it.

It's easy enough to dilute down - there's information here - https://www.mychemicalfreehouse.net/202 ... oxide.html

I wasn't aware that Boots sold 6%, they only sold 3% last time I looked.

I got some from there the other month, it's 6%. It is, of course, possible to get it in more concentrated forms - our local independent pharmacy does it at 12%. Try asking behind the counter for it.

[redskies]

My dentist was livid at the government attitude towards dentistry.He is Old School,and he can never stress enough about the seriousness of an infection.Dentistry is an important part of health care.My wife had a serious infection in April.All he could do was to prescribe Uber Antibiotics,as the Dental Hub would only do extraction.As it happens,the delayed treatment means that she still has to have it extracted.Had she been able to get treatment,he could have saved the tooth...

I would be livid too. I'm not a professional, but I've learned enough from the professionals to know that you do not, ever, screw around with infections of any kind above the jawline - too close to the brain. It's also absolutely unacceptable to ask anyone to live with that kind of pain for any amount of time beyond ''the dentist is on their way to deal with it''.

[Medusa]

Kaolin and Morphine was the Devils own medicine. I was taken ill with a severe stomach complaint on a school residential many years ago and was spoon fed this. No risk assessments, no parental consent and was sent fell walking and not sent home.

As redskies said any infection above the jawline needs urgent attention, not just tooth abscesses, Quinsys can also be life threatening if not treated immediately. Also, I am not presuming that any of you like bits of metal inserting into your face intentionally but some people do and these can also lead to severe infections which can travel to the brain if not treated promptly. Most GP's will insist that infected facial piercings are removed immediately and will not prescribe antibiotics until this has been agreed.

[Bosworth]

I carry stocks of a large array of prescription medicines precisely for this reason. If I can’t get official UK-supplied versions I have my preps to fall back on.

There are clearly risks with this approach but they can be mostly mitigated. My view is that if I need them in a hurry or can’t get hold of them in a timely fashion then it’s better than nothing.

Eg Massive anthrax attack in a city. Chances of there being enough ciprofloxacin to go round in time are low. Chances of death from anthrax if infected from inhalation ~80%. I’ll take my chances with what I purchased - very much less than 80% chance of killing me...

PS It is NOT illegal to buy medicines online. Whether it is sensible or not is a debate but it is not illegal.