First Aid - Antibiotics
Penicillin can now be taken orally & be just as effective if not more so than shots administrated intramuscularly, which is why your doctor may suggest you taking along a supply of oral penicillin, perhaps in combination with one or more of the safer *Sulfa drugs.
Because of their qualities of absorption some of these penicillin compounds should as directed be taken before meals. A bottle of 50 tablets occupies very little room. The standard tablet contains about 250,000 units of penicillin, the average dose for infection with fever then being one tablet, 4 to 6 hours apart, 3 or 4 times a day. In case of pneumonia to give an example; a usual treatment would be 1 tablet 3 or 4 times a day as directed. This is to be continued until there was a definite response- a clinical improvement that is.
Particularly the all important one signified by the dropping of fever. This a reason why a good thermometer belongs in a First Aid kit. As soon as the temperature remains normal for 12 hours the dosage might be halved for 2 days. A reason for not stopping it immediately is that when the infection is not adequately treated but only suppressed, it may flare up again.
If some infections were likely as a result perhaps of a bad cut, a sound preventive step might be to go on 1/2 dosage for 3 days. A more serious situation as in the instance of a compound fracture would call for a full dosage.
Penicillin is known to have some effect in combating Tetanus. It might be preventively used therefore, if there seems to be even a remote possibility of tetanus as from gunshot wound or from a deep puncture wound contaminated by soil, clothing etc. It is not advisable to take antibiotics for long periods. A week is long enough. If there is no response by then, the particular antibiotic is probably doing no good & may as well be quit anyway.
