1998: You have a pus-filled sore
Examination
- Hmm. Yes, you have one nasty-looking lesion. It's not fluctuant, which means, in layman's terms, that it's not squishy. If it were, I'd send you to a surgeon and have it drained. You also have a temperature of 100.2.
Diagnosis
- The sore is infected, most likely with a bacteria called Staphylococcus.
Treatment
- I want you to soak the lesion three to four times a day in warm water. The water should be as warm as you can stand it. This will help in draining the pus out of the wound. I'm also going to prescribe an antibiotic called cephalexin. Years ago we used penicillin for Staph -- with great results. But because the bacteria has mutated over the years, penicillin is now ineffective.
Prognosis
- Two days later...
The lesion is healing up nicely. The infection is under control.
Start Over | 1900 | 1950 | 1998