IV Antibiotics?

thanks for asking this question... i was going to ask the same thing.  but also when would a Dr. prescribe  IV antibotics instead of oral? Is it every day? Do you have to have a Picline or port? is it where people can see it?

IV Rocephine made me feel the best and got me feeling better faster than any other oral abx.

When you go in to have the Picc line in which can be done in the hospital or at the clinic depending on how things are set up
with you doc. I was nervous about the unexpected and it helped so much to be giving a valium or something to calm your nerves.
You cannot be tense at all they only have a short period of time to get that line in once they start. The second time I had my Picc
they tried three time before they were successful. And they can only try in one place and then move to another.
Once the line is inserted they will take an x-ray to see if the line is placed in the correct place. (in to far or not enough)
My meds were giving to me at the LLMD office were they prepared the abx. I was giving a weeks supply of abx they came in a
lil ball with a balloon of med inside which is pressurized and everyday around the same time would administer my abx thru my
Picc line and weekly would go in to the docs office and get a dressing change and another weekly supply of meds.
Very important when getting a dressing change. The nurse will clean the area with Chloraprep or Alcohol. It will burn slightly,
DO NOT BLOW on it for that wound is open. Make sure the nurse lets it dry completely before applying dressing. You could get irritation
and or blisters. I was allergic to the chloraprep and got blisters and rash under my dressing.....VERY ITCHY! So if you know you can
handle the alcohol I would not even try the chloraprep. The Picc line can be unconfortable at times but I feel that if it inserted in a
good place you should not have a problem with comfort. There is a sleeve you can buy to cover the area while showering, I never got
one but wish I did. Cant remember who on here used them but you can get them offline and sometimes certain pharmacies.

Good Luck with your Picc line and on to better healing

thanks for asking. I am also waiting on insurance approval for IV. However, dr. told me someone would come out to house to put line in? yikes. also, how long does it take to do the IV at a sitting?

My dose took about 10-15 minutes per day tops. I injected it into the picc using prepackaged syringes. The syringes screw into the picc line leads.
I had two lines, one they drew blood from once a week and the second one I used for my Rocephin dose.

Line-1 Flush(saline) Flush(Hepprin)
Line-2 Flush(saline) Dose(Rocephin) Flush(saline) Flush(Hepprin)

I have been told that they usually do not use a port for this kind of treatment. I asked and wanted one myself
because I knew how easy they were to take care of. Most ports are used for long term use of meds. Picc lines
are for shorter periods of administiring the meds.

I have never heard of a 2 line Picc. My nurse would take the blood sample every week I went in for dressing change
from the one line. Since my meds were in a pressurized ball it would take about 30 to 45 min a day to administer the
meds. Most all the nurses will go thru everything with you on how to take care of the meds on your own so you dont
have to have a nurse come to your house on a daily basis. That cuts some costs. And I would go to the clinic and get
a dressing change everyweek, along with blood work, and supply of another weeks worth of Rocephine.

Hope this helps

It really does depend on what your insurance says. When I had my P-Line put in, I went over to the Lyme Center, they did my first IV drip for me there, then I had to go to the office 3 times a week and the other 4 days I was given all the supplies (syringes, heprin, alcohol wipes, lines, and the frozen abx) I had to bring a cold type bag so I could keep it cold, it really was not a big deal cause I lived pretty close. I was a little nervous at first, which is only natural, but then you start to get the hang of it, and I would drip in the living room while watching TV. Hubby installed a hook that was attached to a speaker in the house where I could put my IV bag. But then I know some people from the office that had to go every day because of their insurance.

 

about the picc line vs port. definitely picc is easier to get . but also there is apicc line that is great that doesn't need flushing except for after you get the abx. but it doesn't need flushing over weekend when I am not getting treated. not all piccs are like that. some you have to flush every night

Mine was located in my left arm, on the inner side of my bicep. The sleeve to protect it kept it mostly above my elbow. I wore long sleeve shirts to conceal it while at work. My left arm was pretty much useless when the picc line was in. They told me to not lift anything heavy or have my blood pressure taken with that arm. I would get a pain in my arm if I used it too much.