Question about OTC antibiotic

[Amila]

Hello all,

I was told my my dermatologist to treat small, self-limiting nostril infection with OTC Bacitracin ointment for a week, since I refused to take Mupirocin which he wanted to prescribe. No OTC antibacterial ointments have any warnings about C Diff, and they are all FDA approved. My question is if anyone used OTC topical antibiotics with any issues? My would be Bacitracin only, not Neosporin which is topical antibiotic with 3 different antibiotics in it. I may be overreacting - but don't we all who suffered from C Diff?

Thank you much in advance,

Ismaila

[roy]

If something is self limiting it does not need treating!

[Amila]

Thank you Roy,

I think you are right, since my ENT, who I visited in relation to something completely different, last week, did not even note that, and he did look into my nose and everything!

I will wait if somebody else has a thought on this, but thank you very much,

Ismaila

[beth22]

I have used neosporin ointment in my nose before and did not have any problems. I have also used mupirocin on a hand infection and had to use it 4 x per day for over a week and did not have any issues either.

[Amila]

Beth, thank you very much.

My problem is that the dermatologist did not have my nose cultured, and the little redness inside the nostril , at least for now, is NOT getting any worse. I am wondering if I should use any antibiotic ointment before they culture it. He wanted me to use Mupirocin, but it has, as you know, C Diff warning on the leaflet, including topical. Bacitracin can be bought as a single antibiotic, not as one of the three in Neosporin, and I read online that some dermatologists give that for inside nose as well ( I read on the legitimate medical sites).

Do not know what to do... I would really like to avoid if my infection is not spreading, and especially if it is not MRSA. Thank you for your advice.

[NanciT]

I have used neosporin and other OTC topical antibiotics with no issues. We do know some of the topical RX antibiotics can cause issues.

If it were me, I would try the OTC and it may clear it up

Good Luck!

NanciT

[GtrGrl]

I wouldn’t treat your nose for now, if it’s stable and not causing you much discomfort; I don’t think it’s worth the risk. You could get it cultured meanwhile just to see if anything comes up?

Hope you don’t mind me jumping on your thread but I actually have a similar dilemma, having been prescribed Trimovate cream, which contains oxytetracycline and nystatin.

I’ve been suffering with a gynae infection for 9 months now and getting increasingly ill (itching, burning, abdo pain, muscle pain, swollen joints, nightsweats, chest pain, brain fog, no appetite, nausea, weakness) but they can’t culture anything (I guess not all bacteria can be cultured) so I’d be using it in tiny amounts to see if it helps, rather than as a proven targeted treatment. With 5 bouts of C Diff under my belt and PTSD from the whole saga, safe to say I’m extremely concerned but I also cannot continue in this much discomfort. If it’s spread to my pelvis and lymph nodes like I suspect, I’m really in trouble.

TLDR: does anyone know if topical oxytetracycline is especially high risk?