 | ||||||||||||
|
 |
|
4:10 pm EST 52°F (11°C) in Dearborn Heights, MI
Calendar of Updates A follow-up to my last update here from 11 days ago: Last Thursday, I received a phone call from the doctors that had checked me out that morning, and they had a more definitive diagnosis for me. Apparently, I had a case of Henoch-Schönlein purpura; according to information that I obtained from both that doctor and online sources, HSP usually occurs in younger people and tends to follow an upper-respiratory infection. That part would make sense, because I can recall my sinuses having gone crazy on me ever since the early part of February. I must have never realized that it was actually an infection, rather than just a long-term exposure to some allergen that set me off. Anyhow, the bottom line is that the treatments I was given — desoximetasone, a steroidal anti-inflammatory skin cream, and naprosyn, essentially double the per-pill dose of Aleve you can buy over the counter — have killed off about 95% of the skin rash. In fact, I would say that taking the naprosyn has helped my sinuses as well — probably by reducing the inflammation, even if not treating the underlying problem. As for that underlying sinus problem, the dermatology doctors who saw me a week and a half ago have set me up with an appointment to see a general practicioner right before their own appointment on Thursday. He will have access to the records the dermatology clinic created for me, so he should have a fair idea of what I will need. It may be as simple as a short course of antibiotics to kill the infection (if any), and putting me on a prescription nasal spray like Flonase. Finally, I would like to give a plug to a friend of mine. Before long, he will be opening a new site dedicated to the highways of the state of Florida. He is still working on it at this point, so all you'll see at the moment is an error page, but I will let my readers know when it is put up at www.floridahighways.org. (I know at least one of my loyal readers here loves taking road trips from his Virginia home, so I bet he'll really enjoy this when it's done.) |
