To see a GP for this?

[togoornottogoto]

I’m currently on holiday.

I have been absolutely ravaged by mosquitoes. I don’t know when or where but the little buggers have got me.

One bite went very infected, it’s still red and angry but calming down with an antibiotic lotion. It turned into a huge blister, weeping and redness spreading. I didn’t break the skin, it started weeping without any warning.

I now have at least three bites that have got tiny blisters on them. I’m desperate to treat them with the same antibiotics but this seems a really extreme reaction from my body!

I had one bite do the same last year, in the same area. So I don’t know if it’s an allergy or not. I’m keeping an eye on them for now, if they worsen I’ll obviously go to the pharmacy again but I’m hoping they don’t.

AIBU to see a GP when I’m home though? It’s concerning me that I’m either having some sort of strange allergic reaction, or I am apparently getting infections very easily!

Of course she can see her GP about this if she’s worried.

There isn’t a list of ailments that you are limited to consulting doctors about.

She has infected insect bites, this is exactly what the NHS is for.

Why not go to a pharmacy while abroad.

They'll have seen it all before and might be able to support.

They will if they’ve become infected.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-62065525

When are you due back? If the redness is spreading and they feel painful then I wouldn't leave it. I got attacked by them in my leg on holiday 3 days in, they blistered and looked infected so I saw the hotels Dr who gave me some antibiotics and a cream (appointment and treatment were covered by my insurance). On the last day I woke up with 6 more bites, all bloated and swollen. When I got home the next day my leg was very swollen and I could hardly walk - pharmacist advised to go straight to A&E who drained the blisters and gave me a 7 day course of antibiotics (8 a day). 2 months later they are healing and I'm just trying to prevent scars. A&E said it was an extreme reaction and to visit my GP to understand what causes it

Or would it just have got better on it's own as they usually do. It's really difficult to decide if bites are infected or just a bad reaction but most "infected" bites are just really bad allergies to the venom in the insect.

It’s called skeeter syndrome. Take a daily antihistamine, make sure to use antihistamine cream on the bite immediately. There’s also a bite sucker product you can buy that removes the chemical they put in your skin. You also have to be really thorough with using bug spray. Either DEEt or I like Smidge spray.

Use your travel insurance/GHIC card and see a healthcare professional before you come home. If you're feverish and have an open wound, it sounds like you have an infection. Your hotel or local pharmacy will be able to point you to an English-speaking doctor or prescriber.

If you feel you need to see a doctor, make an appointment. If you're in two minds, see a pharmacist and they will make a doctor's appointment for you if necessary. Don't be put off seeing a doctor though, they would rather you come in with an infected bite than end up in hospital with cellulitis or sepsis.

Be careful giving dangerous advice like this. I’ve just lost a friend following what seemed like a minor infection (not mosquito related). If the infection due to the bites doesn’t clear up or gets worse it‘s absolutely what the NHS is for, especially if the OP feels unwell

I agree, a relative of a friend died due to sepsis caused by an insect bite. It's rare but it does happen.

Don’t ask these people, some of whom are offering very unhelpful advice, see a` pharmacist or doctor..
get well soon

I've had something similar in the UK and ended up at the walk in centre as my ankle swelled up overnight. They gave me super strength anti-histamines, penned a line on my leg and said get checked for pre diabetes. One of the professionals on here hopefully will explain that link better than I can.

You need to watch for tracking towards the heart. That’s a red line heading in the direction of your heart. If that happens seek medical attention immediately. I’m allergic to some bites and have been hospitalised for IV antibiotics before. Get hold of some allevia (fexofenadine) 180mg. It’s an antihistamine that I’m prescribed when my bites get bad, it’s now available over the counter.

It’s been improved by time. You said yourself it took a few days to notice a difference after starting the cream. Some antibiotics have a small anti-inflammatory action so there might be an element of that. Antibiotic cream is useless in treating cellulitis which is essentially what you’re saying you have.

Keep going with antihistamines (sometimes docs recommend twice daily for this sort of thing but will depend on your health and other meds), and I’d be tempted to buy a standard bite cream from a pharmacy and apply liberally! It’s really common to respond like this to insect bites so not sure what the GP can do about your more general questions.

The pharmacy can give anti biotics for bites in fact, so start there.

It sounds like it's gone further than the initial allergic reaction and got infected, so ignore people saying it's just an allergy. You can develop cellulitis from it, or even sepsis, so best to get it seen.

Risk of cellulitis. See a pharmacist and if they think its appropriate, a doctor.

No, you're ignoring people who disagree with you.

Of course it's what the NHS is for. It's a service we pay to use if we think we have a medical issue.

Any GP will tell you that they'd rather see a dozen false alarms than miss one dangerous bite

I get like this when I’m pregnant. I’d go see a pharmacist - they can prescribe more in Italy than they are allowed in the uk

First time this happened to me I had three bites that had blistered to the size of a 50p coin. I went to the doctor and they gave me all the paraphernalia to pop and dress the blisters, 45 years on I can’t see them doing that! Like others I now take antihistamines a couple of weeks before i go away but I’m now starting to react badly to being bitten here. In fact I went to see a pharmacist last week because I had three tiny bites that had caused a welt across my leg. He thought the bite may have caused cellulitis and gave me antibiotics.

Thing is by the time you get back home the bites will have healed so going to see a gp is pointless as there’ll be nothing to see. I think from here on you will need to take more precautions to avoid being bitten and ensure you have antihistamine creams and pills with you when abroad.

How are you today?

if the redness is tracking and getting bigger, you need to see your gp, or go to a and e. That’s an emergency and needs strong antibiotics.

The op did not intend to see her GP about these prevailing bites as she is presently out of tthe country. She suggested a GP appointment to discuss why she reacts badly to bites. Many people do, we manage it, usually with otc remedies, including antihistamines. That is what I think is inappropriate use of GP time.

I react badly and with an infected, tracking bite, usually involving half a limb, of course I've sought oral AB's, formerly from a minor injuries unit with a nurse practitioner, nowadays via a UK pharmacy. The op's pictures that I have seen do not indicate that level of severity.

I would not waste my GP's time discussimg why I react badly to bites. It's well documented from reliable sources on the internet.

This is utterly ridiculous. The point of going to a GP is in part preventative, in case this develops into something much more expensive for the NHS to treat. Many GP practices now work on the basis of a triage system so that minor issues can be dealt with by nurses or other junior staff, so NHS resources are used as they should be.