Question:
Hi Everyone I have just returned from 10 days on the Volendam’s Eastern Wayfarer Cruise. It was my first trip on Hal and I was much looking forward to it after reading so many of the praiseworthy letters on this NG. Unfortunately, my experience was not so good. On the third day out I got a severe upper respiratory infection which the ship’s doctor treated with a powerful antibiotic. Unfortunately, the accompanying cough made me reluctant to go to any shows or even to congregate with people. A man at my table in the dining room came down with pneumonia a day later, and a woman was taken off the ship in St. Thomas in an ambulance suffering from pneumonia. I heard via the grapevine that there were other cases of pneumonia on the ship. The effects of the antibiotic stayed with me throughout the cruise so I was not a particularly happy cruiser, especially since I could not taste anything. I cannot emphasize enough how great the staff and crew were, especially the infirmary staff. I only wish I had been well enough to experience what seemed to be an excellent cruise. One thing I was impressed with was HAL’s policy of early boarding—I got on the ship about 12:00 noon and with others, was taken to the Lido Deck where you could stow your hand luggage, have a drink and a nice lunch and then wander around the ship (certain areas restricted) I was in my cabin by about 1:30. I was wondering if any one else had heard of this outbreak of illness. Please let me emphasize, I am in no way saying that it was HAL’s fault, but are outbreaks like this a fairly common experience on Cruise ships? I have only taken four cruises so I cannot speak with any degree of certainty. I was impressed with HAL’s emphasis on cleanliness–hand disinfecting stations in many places—why o why do more people not use them??? I hope that on my next trip with HAL that I will be better able to appreciate what looked to me to be a superior and classy outfit. Chris
Response:
Chris, I am sorry to hear about your illness. My family and I take sanitizers and use them before we eat….especially in the Lido-type restaurants. We will be on the Volendam on 3/15 doing the same itinerary as you. It will be our first HAL cruise. We have an 11 year old daughter and have sailed RCI a number of times and Princess once. I was a tad reluctant to go with HAL because of my daughter, but the timing and price worked out well for us. Again, I am sorry that you were ill and hope that you get a chance to go again soon.
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi Everyone I have just returned from 10 days on the Volendam’s Eastern Wayfarer Cruise. It was my first trip on Hal and I was much looking forward to it after reading so many of the praiseworthy letters on this NG. Unfortunately, my experience was not so good. On the third day out I got a severe upper respiratory infection which the ship’s doctor treated with a powerful antibiotic. Unfortunately, the accompanying cough made me reluctant to go to any shows or even to congregate with people. A man at my table in the dining room came down with pneumonia a day later, and a woman was taken off the ship in St. Thomas in an ambulance suffering from pneumonia. I heard via the grapevine that there were other cases of pneumonia on the ship. The effects of the antibiotic stayed with me throughout the cruise so I was not a particularly happy cruiser, especially since I could not taste anything. I cannot emphasize enough how great the staff and crew were, especially the infirmary staff. I only wish I had been well enough to experience what seemed to be an excellent cruise. One thing I was impressed with was HAL’s policy of early boarding—I got on the ship about 12:00 noon and with others, was taken to the Lido Deck where you could stow your hand luggage, have a drink and a nice lunch and then wander around the ship (certain areas restricted) I was in my cabin by about 1:30. I was wondering if any one else had heard of this outbreak of illness. Please let me emphasize, I am in no way saying that it was HAL’s fault, but are outbreaks like this a fairly common experience on Cruise ships? I have only taken four cruises so I cannot speak with any degree of certainty. I was impressed with HAL’s emphasis on cleanliness–hand disinfecting stations in many places—why o why do more people not use them??? I hope that on my next trip with HAL that I will be better able to appreciate what looked to me to be a superior and classy outfit. Chris
Response:
Hi Everyone I have just returned from 10 days on the Volendam’s Eastern Wayfarer Cruise. It was my first trip on Hal and I was much looking forward to it after reading so many of the praiseworthy letters on this NG. Unfortunately, my experience was not so good. On the third day out I got a severe upper respiratory infection which the ship’s doctor treated with a powerful antibiotic. Unfortunately, the accompanying cough made me reluctant to go to any shows or even to congregate with people.
Chris, Sorry you were sick on your cruise. The URI with cough you had seems to be going around. I have several friends in different parts of the USA who have had the same thing this winter. DH and I took turns being sick on our recent cruise on the Rhapsoday, but we only lost 1 or 2 days each. We didn’t see the ships doctor, but the staff was very kind to us. I hope you are feeling better by now and that you will be able to cruise again soon!! sue
Response:
Which antibiotic did they give you? Something doesn’t sound right, for that many people to get pneumonia (if it’s actually true). You might want to talk to your doctor about it. –Tom
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi Everyone I have just returned from 10 days on the Volendam’s Eastern Wayfarer Cruise. It was my first trip on Hal and I was much looking forward to it after reading so many of the praiseworthy letters on this NG. Unfortunately, my experience was not so good. On the third day out I got a severe upper respiratory infection which the ship’s doctor treated with a powerful antibiotic. Unfortunately, the accompanying cough made me reluctant to go to any shows or even to congregate with people. A man at my table in the dining room came down with pneumonia a day later, and a woman was taken off the ship in St. Thomas in an ambulance suffering from pneumonia. I heard via the grapevine that there were other cases of pneumonia on the ship. The effects of the antibiotic stayed with me throughout the cruise so I was not a particularly happy cruiser, especially since I could not taste anything. I cannot emphasize enough how great the staff and crew were, especially the infirmary staff. I only wish I had been well enough to experience what seemed to be an excellent cruise. One thing I was impressed with was HAL’s policy of early boarding—I got on the ship about 12:00 noon and with others, was taken to the Lido Deck where you could stow your hand luggage, have a drink and a nice lunch and then wander around the ship (certain areas restricted) I was in my cabin by about 1:30. I was wondering if any one else had heard of this outbreak of illness. Please let me emphasize, I am in no way saying that it was HAL’s fault, but are outbreaks like this a fairly common experience on Cruise ships? I have only taken four cruises so I cannot speak with any degree of certainty. I was impressed with HAL’s emphasis on cleanliness–hand disinfecting stations in many places—why o why do more people not use them??? I hope that on my next trip with HAL that I will be better able to appreciate what looked to me to be a superior and classy outfit. Chris
Response:
Which antibiotic did they give you? Something doesn’t sound right, for that many people to get pneumonia (if it’s actually true). You might want to talk to your doctor about it.
Can’t He has pneumonia.
Response:
To Chris I welcome you to post your experience onboard the Volendam on my message board at http://mjohns2.ipbhost.com/ . It will give my members some insight as to what happens when one gets ill. — http://mjohns2.ipbhost.com/
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi Everyone I have just returned from 10 days on the Volendam’s Eastern Wayfarer Cruise. It was my first trip on Hal and I was much looking forward to it after reading so many of the praiseworthy letters on this NG. Unfortunately, my experience was not so good. On the third day out I got a severe upper respiratory infection which the ship’s doctor treated with a powerful antibiotic. Unfortunately, the accompanying cough made me reluctant to go to any shows or even to congregate with people. A man at my table in the dining room came down with pneumonia a day later, and a woman was taken off the ship in St. Thomas in an ambulance suffering from pneumonia. I heard via the grapevine that there were other cases of pneumonia on the ship. The effects of the antibiotic stayed with me throughout the cruise so I was not a particularly happy cruiser, especially since I could not taste anything. I cannot emphasize enough how great the staff and crew were, especially the infirmary staff. I only wish I had been well enough to experience what seemed to be an excellent cruise. One thing I was impressed with was HAL’s policy of early boarding—I got on the ship about 12:00 noon and with others, was taken to the Lido Deck where you could stow your hand luggage, have a drink and a nice lunch and then wander around the ship (certain areas restricted) I was in my cabin by about 1:30. I was wondering if any one else had heard of this outbreak of illness. Please let me emphasize, I am in no way saying that it was HAL’s fault, but are outbreaks like this a fairly common experience on Cruise ships? I have only taken four cruises so I cannot speak with any degree of certainty. I was impressed with HAL’s emphasis on cleanliness–hand disinfecting stations in many places—why o why do more people not use them??? I hope that on my next trip with HAL that I will be better able to appreciate what looked to me to be a superior and classy outfit. Chris
Response:
He said he had an upper respiratory infection, and he said that others had pneumonia — not him. There is viral pneumonia, which would spread from person to person, I believe, and would not be affected by antibiotics, I imagine. June Which antibiotic did they give you? Something doesn’t sound right, for that many people to get pneumonia (if it’s actually true). You might want to talk to your doctor about it. –Tom
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi Everyone I have just returned from 10 days on the Volendam’s Eastern Wayfarer Cruise. It was my first trip on Hal and I was much looking forward to it after reading so many of the praiseworthy letters on this NG. Unfortunately, my experience was not so good. On the third day out I got a severe upper respiratory infection which the ship’s doctor treated with a powerful antibiotic. Unfortunately, the accompanying cough made me reluctant to go to any shows or even to congregate with people. A man at my table in the dining room came down with pneumonia a day later, and a woman was taken off the ship in St. Thomas in an ambulance suffering from pneumonia. I heard via the grapevine that there were other cases of pneumonia on the ship. The effects of the antibiotic stayed with me throughout the cruise so I was not a particularly happy cruiser, especially since I could not taste anything. I cannot emphasize enough how great the staff and crew were, especially the infirmary staff. I only wish I had been well enough to experience what seemed to be an excellent cruise. One thing I was impressed with was HAL’s policy of early boarding—I got on the ship about 12:00 noon and with others, was taken to the Lido Deck where you could stow your hand luggage, have a drink and a nice lunch and then wander around the ship (certain areas restricted) I was in my cabin by about 1:30. I was wondering if any one else had heard of this outbreak of illness. Please let me emphasize, I am in no way saying that it was HAL’s fault, but are outbreaks like this a fairly common experience on Cruise ships? I have only taken four cruises so I cannot speak with any degree of certainty. I was impressed with HAL’s emphasis on cleanliness–hand disinfecting stations in many places—why o why do more people not use them??? I hope that on my next trip with HAL that I will be better able to appreciate what looked to me to be a superior and classy outfit. Chris
Response:
Hi, Folks, I do think there is an unusual amount of pneumonia around in the general population this year. I am just recovering from it and have two friends who have had it also (we didn’t catch it from each other, either). Connie in Santa Fe – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Which antibiotic did they give you? Something doesn’t sound right, for that many people to get pneumonia (if it’s actually true). You might want to talk to your doctor about it.
Response:
Hi: HAL had one of the best children’s programs afloat. Our TA was reluctant to put us on it once because we had a teenager (I think he was about 15 at the time). He went down to check out the chicks at a get together the first night and we didn’t see him again other than for meals and to check in. Even in the evenings they had activities for them so I didn’t see hoards of bored kids up to no good. On our Alaskan cruise there were a bunch of kids but they never bothered us–by now he was out of high school. Every now and then I would see the counselor walking with "her little chicks" behind her to get from Point A to Point B but that was about it. They had activities the kids like to participate in and the groups were more age appropriate than the other ships. They also had tours (on the Alaskan run) for the kids so Mom and Dad could do a different tour not suitable for a child (white water rafting comes to mind). Tucker in Texas
Response:
Please help out this new forum in its growth, we are looking for new members to help the growth of the fourm. http://mjohns2.ipbhost.com/
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi Everyone I have just returned from 10 days on the Volendam’s Eastern Wayfarer Cruise. It was my first trip on Hal and I was much looking forward to it after reading so many of the praiseworthy letters on this NG. Unfortunately, my experience was not so good. On the third day out I got a severe upper respiratory infection which the ship’s doctor treated with a powerful antibiotic. Unfortunately, the accompanying cough made me reluctant to go to any shows or even to congregate with people. A man at my table in the dining room came down with pneumonia a day later, and a woman was taken off the ship in St. Thomas in an ambulance suffering from pneumonia. I heard via the grapevine that there were other cases of pneumonia on the ship. The effects of the antibiotic stayed with me throughout the cruise so I was not a particularly happy cruiser, especially since I could not taste anything. I cannot emphasize enough how great the staff and crew were, especially the infirmary staff. I only wish I had been well enough to experience what seemed to be an excellent cruise. One thing I was impressed with was HAL’s policy of early boarding—I got on the ship about 12:00 noon and with others, was taken to the Lido Deck where you could stow your hand luggage, have a drink and a nice lunch and then wander around the ship (certain areas restricted) I was in my cabin by about 1:30. I was wondering if any one else had heard of this outbreak of illness. Please let me emphasize, I am in no way saying that it was HAL’s fault, but are outbreaks like this a fairly common experience on Cruise ships? I have only taken four cruises so I cannot speak with any degree of certainty. I was impressed with HAL’s emphasis on cleanliness–hand disinfecting stations in many places—why o why do more people not use them??? I hope that on my next trip with HAL that I will be better able to appreciate what looked to me to be a superior and classy outfit. Chris
Response:
Please help out this new forum in its growth, we are looking for new members to help the growth of the fourm. http://mjohns2.ipbhost.com/
That’s it. You have hit Official RTC Troll Spamadvertiser Status (TSS).
Response:
Tom, the OP had an upper respiratory…not sure why the MD even put her on an antibiotic. She mentioned two other people who had pneumonia. The others were just "heard through the grapevine" with no actual numbers mentioned. Why does this sound unusual to you? In the facility I work in, we can have several people with pneumonia in one unit. It can spread easily before it’s actually diagnosed. And many start out with a simple URI. Considering there are thousands of people on a cruiseship, I don’t know why you think something doesn’t sound right. Jo-Ann – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Which antibiotic did they give you? Something doesn’t sound right, for that many people to get pneumonia (if it’s actually true). You might want to talk to your doctor about it. –Tom Hi Everyone I have just returned from 10 days on the Volendam’s Eastern Wayfarer Cruise. It was my first trip on Hal and I was much looking forward to it after reading so many of the praiseworthy letters on this NG. Unfortunately, my experience was not so good. On the third day out I got a severe upper respiratory infection which the ship’s doctor treated with a powerful antibiotic. Unfortunately, the accompanying cough made me reluctant to go to any shows or even to congregate with people. A man at my table in the dining room came down with pneumonia a day later, and a woman was taken off the ship in St. Thomas in an ambulance suffering from pneumonia. I heard via the grapevine that there were other cases of pneumonia on the ship. The effects of the antibiotic stayed with me throughout the cruise so I was not a particularly happy cruiser, especially since I could not taste anything. I cannot emphasize enough how great the staff and crew were, especially the infirmary staff. I only wish I had been well enough to experience what seemed to be an excellent cruise. One thing I was impressed with was HAL’s policy of early boarding—I got on the ship about 12:00 noon and with others, was taken to the Lido Deck where you could stow your hand luggage, have a drink and a nice lunch and then wander around the ship (certain areas restricted) I was in my cabin by about 1:30. I was wondering if any one else had heard of this outbreak of illness. Please let me emphasize, I am in no way saying that it was HAL’s fault, but are outbreaks like this a fairly common experience on Cruise ships? I have only taken four cruises so I cannot speak with any degree of certainty. I was impressed with HAL’s emphasis on cleanliness–hand disinfecting stations in many places—why o why do more people not use them??? I hope that on my next trip with HAL that I will be better able to appreciate what looked to me to be a superior and classy outfit. Chris
Response:
Tom, the OP had an upper respiratory…not sure why the MD even put her on an antibiotic.
To ward of potential bacterial infection in a lowered immune system state.
Response:
Tom, the OP had an upper respiratory…not sure why the MD even put her on an antibiotic. She mentioned two other people who had pneumonia. The others were just "heard through the grapevine" with no actual numbers mentioned. Why does this sound unusual to you? In the facility I work in, we can have several people with pneumonia in one unit. It can spread easily before it’s actually diagnosed. And many start out with a simple URI. Considering there are thousands of people on a cruiseship, I don’t know why you think something doesn’t sound right. Jo-Ann
Pneumonia is more an end point, rather than a beginning point. You start with an infection and it progresses to pneumonia if it’s not treated properly. He may have had a similar infection to the one that caused others to get pneumonia, but with antibiotics, maybe his infection never progressed that far. Why an antibiotic? If it’s a bacterial or mycoplasma infection, the antibiotic (if it’s the right one) will work. But even if it’s a viral, antibiotics can be given to prevent a secondary bacterial infection which often does hit. Plus, anyone with kids might remember… as soon as there’s an upper respiratory infection… how often does it turn into an ear infection? For us it was frequently. It seems like every ear infection in the history of the world starts at night, and usually on a Sunday night, when there are no doctor offices open. And those are almost always bacterial – first you start with the pink stuff… if that doesn’t work you go to the purple stuff. Maybe a few cases of pneumonia is more common than I’m envisioning it… but for a few people to get pneumonia (I did originally say if it was in fact true)… it struck me as out of the ordinary. –Tom
Response:
I’ve never heard any comments about HAL’s children’s program before. Thanks for sharing. I always thought of reserving HAL for an adults only cruise because of that and also because they can only fit 3 people to a room and we have 2 children… – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi: HAL had one of the best children’s programs afloat. Our TA was reluctant to put us on it once because we had a teenager (I think he was about 15 at the time). He went down to check out the chicks at a get together the first night and we didn’t see him again other than for meals and to check in. Even in the evenings they had activities for them so I didn’t see hoards of bored kids up to no good. On our Alaskan cruise there were a bunch of kids but they never bothered us–by now he was out of high school. Every now and then I would see the counselor walking with "her little chicks" behind her to get from Point A to Point B but that was about it. They had activities the kids like to participate in and the groups were more age appropriate than the other ships. They also had tours (on the Alaskan run) for the kids so Mom and Dad could do a different tour not suitable for a child (white water rafting comes to mind). Tucker in Texas
Carnival Tropicale 1982 NCL Dawn 2004
Response:
I’ve never heard any comments about HAL’s children’s program before. Thanks for sharing. I always thought of reserving HAL for an adults only cruise because of that and also because they can only fit 3 people to a room and we have 2 children…
We are on the Volendam in July – cabin for 4. There are a limited number available. Perhaps they were sold out when you enquired. Harvey
Response:
Tom, just for the record, antibiotics don’t "prevent" a bacterial infection. You are presuming you would know if something started out viral and went to bacterial. There is absolutely no reason to give somebody with a URI (e.g. cold) an antibiotic. No doctor should be doing that. If and when it develops into a secondary bacterial infection, then antibiotics are in order. BTW, it’s not true that most kids’ ear infections are bacterial. It just isn’t feasible to culture every kid’s ear infection, therefore, MD’s err on the side of caution and prescribe antibiotics. Probably half of those ear infections would go away on their own. The overuse of antibiotics in this country is having catastrophic fallout. Just wait til you or I really need an antibiotic…and even if WE didn’t abuse it’s use, it will prove useless against most microorganisms. Jo-Ann – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Tom, the OP had an upper respiratory…not sure why the MD even put her on an antibiotic. She mentioned two other people who had pneumonia. The others were just "heard through the grapevine" with no actual numbers mentioned. Why does this sound unusual to you? In the facility I work in, we can have several people with pneumonia in one unit. It can spread easily before it’s actually diagnosed. And many start out with a simple URI. Considering there are thousands of people on a cruiseship, I don’t know why you think something doesn’t sound right. Jo-Ann Pneumonia is more an end point, rather than a beginning point. You start with an infection and it progresses to pneumonia if it’s not treated properly. He may have had a similar infection to the one that caused others to get pneumonia, but with antibiotics, maybe his infection never progressed that far. Why an antibiotic? If it’s a bacterial or mycoplasma infection, the antibiotic (if it’s the right one) will work. But even if it’s a viral, antibiotics can be given to prevent a secondary bacterial infection which often does hit. Plus, anyone with kids might remember… as soon as there’s an upper respiratory infection… how often does it turn into an ear infection? For us it was frequently. It seems like every ear infection in the history of the world starts at night, and usually on a Sunday night, when there are no doctor offices open. And those are almost always bacterial – first you start with the pink stuff… if that doesn’t work you go to the purple stuff. Maybe a few cases of pneumonia is more common than I’m envisioning it… but for a few people to get pneumonia (I did originally say if it was in fact true)… it struck me as out of the ordinary. –Tom
Response:
Tom, just for the record, antibiotics don’t "prevent" a bacterial infection.
Then what do you call prophylactic usage? When I had my hip replacement done, I was given Vancomycin prophylactically. Now when I go to the dentist, I take a cephalosporin prophylactically. You are presuming you would know if something started out viral and went to bacterial. There is absolutely no reason to give somebody with a URI (e.g. cold) an antibiotic. No doctor should be doing that. If and when it develops into a secondary bacterial infection, then antibiotics are in order. BTW, it’s not true that most kids’ ear infections are bacterial. It just isn’t feasible to culture every kid’s ear infection, therefore, MD’s err on the side of caution and prescribe antibiotics. Probably half of those ear infections would go away on their own.
That seems logical. The overuse of antibiotics in this country is having catastrophic fallout. Just wait til you or I really need an antibiotic…and even if WE didn’t abuse it’s use, it will prove useless against most microorganisms.
Agreed. –Tom – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Jo-Ann
Response:
Tom, again, the use of prophylactic antibiotics won’t actually prevent the bacterial infection from starting. But should one occur, you would have a jump on it. It is wise to use prophylactic antibiotics prior to dental procedures for those with certain heart conditions, but I’m not sure I agree with the use of Vancomycin for a hip replacement if no infection were actually present. None of my patients come back from the hospital after hip surgery on antibiotics unless that have actually developed an infection that requires treatment. And I think you would agree Vancomycin is a bit of overkill. I’ve never heard of Vanco being used prophylactically. Are you sure a nosocomial infection wasn’t detected? I still stand by my earlier statement of it not being prudent to put someone on antibiotics for an upper respiratory with the "assumption" it will turn into a secondary bacterial infection. Jo-Ann – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Tom, just for the record, antibiotics don’t "prevent" a bacterial infection. Then what do you call prophylactic usage? When I had my hip replacement done, I was given Vancomycin prophylactically. Now when I go to the dentist, I take a cephalosporin prophylactically. You are presuming you would know if something started out viral and went to bacterial. There is absolutely no reason to give somebody with a URI (e.g. cold) an antibiotic. No doctor should be doing that. If and when it develops into a secondary bacterial infection, then antibiotics are in order. BTW, it’s not true that most kids’ ear infections are bacterial. It just isn’t feasible to culture every kid’s ear infection, therefore, MD’s err on the side of caution and prescribe antibiotics. Probably half of those ear infections would go away on their own. That seems logical. The overuse of antibiotics in this country is having catastrophic fallout. Just wait til you or I really need an antibiotic…and even if WE didn’t abuse it’s use, it will prove useless against most microorganisms. Agreed. –Tom Jo-Ann
Response:
Tom, again, the use of prophylactic antibiotics won’t actually prevent the bacterial infection from starting. But should one occur, you would have a jump on it. It is wise to use prophylactic antibiotics prior to dental procedures for those with certain heart conditions, but I’m not sure I agree with the use of Vancomycin for a hip replacement if no infection were actually present. None of my patients come back from the hospital after hip surgery on antibiotics unless that have actually developed an infection that requires treatment. And I think you would agree Vancomycin is a bit of overkill. I’ve never heard of Vanco being used prophylactically. Are you sure a nosocomial infection wasn’t detected?
When I woke up from surgery I was on Vancomycin IV. I doubt they could have checked for infections that quickly. –Tom I still stand by my earlier statement of it not being prudent to put someone on antibiotics for an upper respiratory with the "assumption" it will turn into a secondary bacterial infection. Jo-Ann
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Tom, just for the record, antibiotics don’t "prevent" a bacterial infection. Then what do you call prophylactic usage? When I had my hip replacement done, I was given Vancomycin prophylactically. Now when I go to the dentist, I take a cephalosporin prophylactically. You are presuming you would know if something started out viral and went to bacterial. There is absolutely no reason to give somebody with a URI (e.g. cold) an antibiotic. No doctor should be doing that. If and when it develops into a secondary bacterial infection, then antibiotics are in order. BTW, it’s not true that most kids’ ear infections are bacterial. It just isn’t feasible to culture every kid’s ear infection, therefore, MD’s err on the side of caution and prescribe antibiotics. Probably half of those ear infections would go away on their own. That seems logical. The overuse of antibiotics in this country is having catastrophic fallout. Just wait til you or I really need an antibiotic…and even if WE didn’t abuse it’s use, it will prove useless against most microorganisms. Agreed. –Tom Jo-Ann
Response:
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Tom, again, the use of prophylactic antibiotics won’t actually prevent the bacterial infection from starting. But should one occur, you would have a jump on it. It is wise to use prophylactic antibiotics prior to dental procedures for those with certain heart conditions, but I’m not sure I agree with the use of Vancomycin for a hip replacement if no infection were actually present. None of my patients come back from the hospital after hip surgery on antibiotics unless that have actually developed an infection that requires treatment. And I think you would agree Vancomycin is a bit of overkill. I’ve never heard of Vanco being used prophylactically. Are you sure a nosocomial infection wasn’t detected? I still stand by my earlier statement of it not being prudent to put someone on antibiotics for an upper respiratory with the "assumption" it will turn into a secondary bacterial infection.
I received prophylactic Vanco before my last two surgeries. I’m allergic to the "cillins" and Ceclor. Always lightens my pre-surgical mood to watch the staff debate the ototoxic effects of Vanco in front of the already hearing impaired patient. : )
Response:
Hi Everyone I have just returned from 10 days on the Volendam’s Eastern Wayfarer Cruise. It was my first trip on Hal and I was much looking forward to it after reading so many of the praiseworthy letters on this NG. Unfortunately, my experience was not so good. On the third day out I got a severe upper respiratory infection which the ship’s doctor treated with a powerful antibiotic. Unfortunately, the accompanying cough made me reluctant to go to any shows or even to congregate with people. A man at my table in the dining room came down with pneumonia a day later, and a woman was taken off the ship in St. Thomas in an ambulance suffering from pneumonia. I heard via the grapevine that there were other cases of pneumonia on the ship. The effects of the antibiotic stayed with me throughout the cruise so I was not a particularly happy cruiser, especially since I could not taste anything. I cannot emphasize enough how great the staff and crew were, especially the infirmary staff. I only wish I had been well enough to experience what seemed to be an excellent cruise. One thing I was impressed with was HAL’s policy of early boarding—I got on the ship about 12:00 noon and with others, was taken to the Lido Deck where you could stow your hand luggage, have a drink and a nice lunch and then wander around the ship (certain areas restricted) I was in my cabin by about 1:30. I was wondering if any one else had heard of this outbreak of illness. Please let me emphasize, I am in no way saying that it was HAL’s fault, but are outbreaks like this a fairly common experience on Cruise ships? I have only taken four cruises so I cannot speak with any degree of certainty. I was impressed with HAL’s emphasis on cleanliness–hand disinfecting stations in many places—why o why do more people not use them??? I hope that on my next trip with HAL that I will be better able to appreciate what looked to me to be a superior and classy outfit. Chris
Response:
Chris, I am sorry to hear about your illness. My family and I take sanitizers and use them before we eat….especially in the Lido-type restaurants. We will be on the Volendam on 3/15 doing the same itinerary as you. It will be our first HAL cruise. We have an 11 year old daughter and have sailed RCI a number of times and Princess once. I was a tad reluctant to go with HAL because of my daughter, but the timing and price worked out well for us. Again, I am sorry that you were ill and hope that you get a chance to go again soon.
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi Everyone I have just returned from 10 days on the Volendam’s Eastern Wayfarer Cruise. It was my first trip on Hal and I was much looking forward to it after reading so many of the praiseworthy letters on this NG. Unfortunately, my experience was not so good. On the third day out I got a severe upper respiratory infection which the ship’s doctor treated with a powerful antibiotic. Unfortunately, the accompanying cough made me reluctant to go to any shows or even to congregate with people. A man at my table in the dining room came down with pneumonia a day later, and a woman was taken off the ship in St. Thomas in an ambulance suffering from pneumonia. I heard via the grapevine that there were other cases of pneumonia on the ship. The effects of the antibiotic stayed with me throughout the cruise so I was not a particularly happy cruiser, especially since I could not taste anything. I cannot emphasize enough how great the staff and crew were, especially the infirmary staff. I only wish I had been well enough to experience what seemed to be an excellent cruise. One thing I was impressed with was HAL’s policy of early boarding—I got on the ship about 12:00 noon and with others, was taken to the Lido Deck where you could stow your hand luggage, have a drink and a nice lunch and then wander around the ship (certain areas restricted) I was in my cabin by about 1:30. I was wondering if any one else had heard of this outbreak of illness. Please let me emphasize, I am in no way saying that it was HAL’s fault, but are outbreaks like this a fairly common experience on Cruise ships? I have only taken four cruises so I cannot speak with any degree of certainty. I was impressed with HAL’s emphasis on cleanliness–hand disinfecting stations in many places—why o why do more people not use them??? I hope that on my next trip with HAL that I will be better able to appreciate what looked to me to be a superior and classy outfit. Chris
Response:
Hi Everyone I have just returned from 10 days on the Volendam’s Eastern Wayfarer Cruise. It was my first trip on Hal and I was much looking forward to it after reading so many of the praiseworthy letters on this NG. Unfortunately, my experience was not so good. On the third day out I got a severe upper respiratory infection which the ship’s doctor treated with a powerful antibiotic. Unfortunately, the accompanying cough made me reluctant to go to any shows or even to congregate with people.
Chris, Sorry you were sick on your cruise. The URI with cough you had seems to be going around. I have several friends in different parts of the USA who have had the same thing this winter. DH and I took turns being sick on our recent cruise on the Rhapsoday, but we only lost 1 or 2 days each. We didn’t see the ships doctor, but the staff was very kind to us. I hope you are feeling better by now and that you will be able to cruise again soon!! sue
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Which antibiotic did they give you? Something doesn’t sound right, for that many people to get pneumonia (if it’s actually true). You might want to talk to your doctor about it. –Tom
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi Everyone I have just returned from 10 days on the Volendam’s Eastern Wayfarer Cruise. It was my first trip on Hal and I was much looking forward to it after reading so many of the praiseworthy letters on this NG. Unfortunately, my experience was not so good. On the third day out I got a severe upper respiratory infection which the ship’s doctor treated with a powerful antibiotic. Unfortunately, the accompanying cough made me reluctant to go to any shows or even to congregate with people. A man at my table in the dining room came down with pneumonia a day later, and a woman was taken off the ship in St. Thomas in an ambulance suffering from pneumonia. I heard via the grapevine that there were other cases of pneumonia on the ship. The effects of the antibiotic stayed with me throughout the cruise so I was not a particularly happy cruiser, especially since I could not taste anything. I cannot emphasize enough how great the staff and crew were, especially the infirmary staff. I only wish I had been well enough to experience what seemed to be an excellent cruise. One thing I was impressed with was HAL’s policy of early boarding—I got on the ship about 12:00 noon and with others, was taken to the Lido Deck where you could stow your hand luggage, have a drink and a nice lunch and then wander around the ship (certain areas restricted) I was in my cabin by about 1:30. I was wondering if any one else had heard of this outbreak of illness. Please let me emphasize, I am in no way saying that it was HAL’s fault, but are outbreaks like this a fairly common experience on Cruise ships? I have only taken four cruises so I cannot speak with any degree of certainty. I was impressed with HAL’s emphasis on cleanliness–hand disinfecting stations in many places—why o why do more people not use them??? I hope that on my next trip with HAL that I will be better able to appreciate what looked to me to be a superior and classy outfit. Chris
Response:
Which antibiotic did they give you? Something doesn’t sound right, for that many people to get pneumonia (if it’s actually true). You might want to talk to your doctor about it.
Can’t He has pneumonia.
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To Chris I welcome you to post your experience onboard the Volendam on my message board at http://mjohns2.ipbhost.com/ . It will give my members some insight as to what happens when one gets ill. — http://mjohns2.ipbhost.com/
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi Everyone I have just returned from 10 days on the Volendam’s Eastern Wayfarer Cruise. It was my first trip on Hal and I was much looking forward to it after reading so many of the praiseworthy letters on this NG. Unfortunately, my experience was not so good. On the third day out I got a severe upper respiratory infection which the ship’s doctor treated with a powerful antibiotic. Unfortunately, the accompanying cough made me reluctant to go to any shows or even to congregate with people. A man at my table in the dining room came down with pneumonia a day later, and a woman was taken off the ship in St. Thomas in an ambulance suffering from pneumonia. I heard via the grapevine that there were other cases of pneumonia on the ship. The effects of the antibiotic stayed with me throughout the cruise so I was not a particularly happy cruiser, especially since I could not taste anything. I cannot emphasize enough how great the staff and crew were, especially the infirmary staff. I only wish I had been well enough to experience what seemed to be an excellent cruise. One thing I was impressed with was HAL’s policy of early boarding—I got on the ship about 12:00 noon and with others, was taken to the Lido Deck where you could stow your hand luggage, have a drink and a nice lunch and then wander around the ship (certain areas restricted) I was in my cabin by about 1:30. I was wondering if any one else had heard of this outbreak of illness. Please let me emphasize, I am in no way saying that it was HAL’s fault, but are outbreaks like this a fairly common experience on Cruise ships? I have only taken four cruises so I cannot speak with any degree of certainty. I was impressed with HAL’s emphasis on cleanliness–hand disinfecting stations in many places—why o why do more people not use them??? I hope that on my next trip with HAL that I will be better able to appreciate what looked to me to be a superior and classy outfit. Chris
Response:
He said he had an upper respiratory infection, and he said that others had pneumonia — not him. There is viral pneumonia, which would spread from person to person, I believe, and would not be affected by antibiotics, I imagine. June Which antibiotic did they give you? Something doesn’t sound right, for that many people to get pneumonia (if it’s actually true). You might want to talk to your doctor about it. –Tom
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi Everyone I have just returned from 10 days on the Volendam’s Eastern Wayfarer Cruise. It was my first trip on Hal and I was much looking forward to it after reading so many of the praiseworthy letters on this NG. Unfortunately, my experience was not so good. On the third day out I got a severe upper respiratory infection which the ship’s doctor treated with a powerful antibiotic. Unfortunately, the accompanying cough made me reluctant to go to any shows or even to congregate with people. A man at my table in the dining room came down with pneumonia a day later, and a woman was taken off the ship in St. Thomas in an ambulance suffering from pneumonia. I heard via the grapevine that there were other cases of pneumonia on the ship. The effects of the antibiotic stayed with me throughout the cruise so I was not a particularly happy cruiser, especially since I could not taste anything. I cannot emphasize enough how great the staff and crew were, especially the infirmary staff. I only wish I had been well enough to experience what seemed to be an excellent cruise. One thing I was impressed with was HAL’s policy of early boarding—I got on the ship about 12:00 noon and with others, was taken to the Lido Deck where you could stow your hand luggage, have a drink and a nice lunch and then wander around the ship (certain areas restricted) I was in my cabin by about 1:30. I was wondering if any one else had heard of this outbreak of illness. Please let me emphasize, I am in no way saying that it was HAL’s fault, but are outbreaks like this a fairly common experience on Cruise ships? I have only taken four cruises so I cannot speak with any degree of certainty. I was impressed with HAL’s emphasis on cleanliness–hand disinfecting stations in many places—why o why do more people not use them??? I hope that on my next trip with HAL that I will be better able to appreciate what looked to me to be a superior and classy outfit. Chris
Response:
Hi, Folks, I do think there is an unusual amount of pneumonia around in the general population this year. I am just recovering from it and have two friends who have had it also (we didn’t catch it from each other, either). Connie in Santa Fe – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Which antibiotic did they give you? Something doesn’t sound right, for that many people to get pneumonia (if it’s actually true). You might want to talk to your doctor about it.
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Hi: HAL had one of the best children’s programs afloat. Our TA was reluctant to put us on it once because we had a teenager (I think he was about 15 at the time). He went down to check out the chicks at a get together the first night and we didn’t see him again other than for meals and to check in. Even in the evenings they had activities for them so I didn’t see hoards of bored kids up to no good. On our Alaskan cruise there were a bunch of kids but they never bothered us–by now he was out of high school. Every now and then I would see the counselor walking with "her little chicks" behind her to get from Point A to Point B but that was about it. They had activities the kids like to participate in and the groups were more age appropriate than the other ships. They also had tours (on the Alaskan run) for the kids so Mom and Dad could do a different tour not suitable for a child (white water rafting comes to mind). Tucker in Texas
Response:
Please help out this new forum in its growth, we are looking for new members to help the growth of the fourm. http://mjohns2.ipbhost.com/
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi Everyone I have just returned from 10 days on the Volendam’s Eastern Wayfarer Cruise. It was my first trip on Hal and I was much looking forward to it after reading so many of the praiseworthy letters on this NG. Unfortunately, my experience was not so good. On the third day out I got a severe upper respiratory infection which the ship’s doctor treated with a powerful antibiotic. Unfortunately, the accompanying cough made me reluctant to go to any shows or even to congregate with people. A man at my table in the dining room came down with pneumonia a day later, and a woman was taken off the ship in St. Thomas in an ambulance suffering from pneumonia. I heard via the grapevine that there were other cases of pneumonia on the ship. The effects of the antibiotic stayed with me throughout the cruise so I was not a particularly happy cruiser, especially since I could not taste anything. I cannot emphasize enough how great the staff and crew were, especially the infirmary staff. I only wish I had been well enough to experience what seemed to be an excellent cruise. One thing I was impressed with was HAL’s policy of early boarding—I got on the ship about 12:00 noon and with others, was taken to the Lido Deck where you could stow your hand luggage, have a drink and a nice lunch and then wander around the ship (certain areas restricted) I was in my cabin by about 1:30. I was wondering if any one else had heard of this outbreak of illness. Please let me emphasize, I am in no way saying that it was HAL’s fault, but are outbreaks like this a fairly common experience on Cruise ships? I have only taken four cruises so I cannot speak with any degree of certainty. I was impressed with HAL’s emphasis on cleanliness–hand disinfecting stations in many places—why o why do more people not use them??? I hope that on my next trip with HAL that I will be better able to appreciate what looked to me to be a superior and classy outfit. Chris
Response:
Please help out this new forum in its growth, we are looking for new members to help the growth of the fourm. http://mjohns2.ipbhost.com/
That’s it. You have hit Official RTC Troll Spamadvertiser Status (TSS).
Response:
Tom, the OP had an upper respiratory…not sure why the MD even put her on an antibiotic. She mentioned two other people who had pneumonia. The others were just "heard through the grapevine" with no actual numbers mentioned. Why does this sound unusual to you? In the facility I work in, we can have several people with pneumonia in one unit. It can spread easily before it’s actually diagnosed. And many start out with a simple URI. Considering there are thousands of people on a cruiseship, I don’t know why you think something doesn’t sound right. Jo-Ann – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Which antibiotic did they give you? Something doesn’t sound right, for that many people to get pneumonia (if it’s actually true). You might want to talk to your doctor about it. –Tom Hi Everyone I have just returned from 10 days on the Volendam’s Eastern Wayfarer Cruise. It was my first trip on Hal and I was much looking forward to it after reading so many of the praiseworthy letters on this NG. Unfortunately, my experience was not so good. On the third day out I got a severe upper respiratory infection which the ship’s doctor treated with a powerful antibiotic. Unfortunately, the accompanying cough made me reluctant to go to any shows or even to congregate with people. A man at my table in the dining room came down with pneumonia a day later, and a woman was taken off the ship in St. Thomas in an ambulance suffering from pneumonia. I heard via the grapevine that there were other cases of pneumonia on the ship. The effects of the antibiotic stayed with me throughout the cruise so I was not a particularly happy cruiser, especially since I could not taste anything. I cannot emphasize enough how great the staff and crew were, especially the infirmary staff. I only wish I had been well enough to experience what seemed to be an excellent cruise. One thing I was impressed with was HAL’s policy of early boarding—I got on the ship about 12:00 noon and with others, was taken to the Lido Deck where you could stow your hand luggage, have a drink and a nice lunch and then wander around the ship (certain areas restricted) I was in my cabin by about 1:30. I was wondering if any one else had heard of this outbreak of illness. Please let me emphasize, I am in no way saying that it was HAL’s fault, but are outbreaks like this a fairly common experience on Cruise ships? I have only taken four cruises so I cannot speak with any degree of certainty. I was impressed with HAL’s emphasis on cleanliness–hand disinfecting stations in many places—why o why do more people not use them??? I hope that on my next trip with HAL that I will be better able to appreciate what looked to me to be a superior and classy outfit. Chris
Response:
Tom, the OP had an upper respiratory…not sure why the MD even put her on an antibiotic.
To ward of potential bacterial infection in a lowered immune system state.
Response:
Tom, the OP had an upper respiratory…not sure why the MD even put her on an antibiotic. She mentioned two other people who had pneumonia. The others were just "heard through the grapevine" with no actual numbers mentioned. Why does this sound unusual to you? In the facility I work in, we can have several people with pneumonia in one unit. It can spread easily before it’s actually diagnosed. And many start out with a simple URI. Considering there are thousands of people on a cruiseship, I don’t know why you think something doesn’t sound right. Jo-Ann
Pneumonia is more an end point, rather than a beginning point. You start with an infection and it progresses to pneumonia if it’s not treated properly. He may have had a similar infection to the one that caused others to get pneumonia, but with antibiotics, maybe his infection never progressed that far. Why an antibiotic? If it’s a bacterial or mycoplasma infection, the antibiotic (if it’s the right one) will work. But even if it’s a viral, antibiotics can be given to prevent a secondary bacterial infection which often does hit. Plus, anyone with kids might remember… as soon as there’s an upper respiratory infection… how often does it turn into an ear infection? For us it was frequently. It seems like every ear infection in the history of the world starts at night, and usually on a Sunday night, when there are no doctor offices open. And those are almost always bacterial – first you start with the pink stuff… if that doesn’t work you go to the purple stuff. Maybe a few cases of pneumonia is more common than I’m envisioning it… but for a few people to get pneumonia (I did originally say if it was in fact true)… it struck me as out of the ordinary. –Tom
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I’ve never heard any comments about HAL’s children’s program before. Thanks for sharing. I always thought of reserving HAL for an adults only cruise because of that and also because they can only fit 3 people to a room and we have 2 children… – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi: HAL had one of the best children’s programs afloat. Our TA was reluctant to put us on it once because we had a teenager (I think he was about 15 at the time). He went down to check out the chicks at a get together the first night and we didn’t see him again other than for meals and to check in. Even in the evenings they had activities for them so I didn’t see hoards of bored kids up to no good. On our Alaskan cruise there were a bunch of kids but they never bothered us–by now he was out of high school. Every now and then I would see the counselor walking with "her little chicks" behind her to get from Point A to Point B but that was about it. They had activities the kids like to participate in and the groups were more age appropriate than the other ships. They also had tours (on the Alaskan run) for the kids so Mom and Dad could do a different tour not suitable for a child (white water rafting comes to mind). Tucker in Texas
Carnival Tropicale 1982 NCL Dawn 2004
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I’ve never heard any comments about HAL’s children’s program before. Thanks for sharing. I always thought of reserving HAL for an adults only cruise because of that and also because they can only fit 3 people to a room and we have 2 children…
We are on the Volendam in July – cabin for 4. There are a limited number available. Perhaps they were sold out when you enquired. Harvey
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Tom, just for the record, antibiotics don’t "prevent" a bacterial infection. You are presuming you would know if something started out viral and went to bacterial. There is absolutely no reason to give somebody with a URI (e.g. cold) an antibiotic. No doctor should be doing that. If and when it develops into a secondary bacterial infection, then antibiotics are in order. BTW, it’s not true that most kids’ ear infections are bacterial. It just isn’t feasible to culture every kid’s ear infection, therefore, MD’s err on the side of caution and prescribe antibiotics. Probably half of those ear infections would go away on their own. The overuse of antibiotics in this country is having catastrophic fallout. Just wait til you or I really need an antibiotic…and even if WE didn’t abuse it’s use, it will prove useless against most microorganisms. Jo-Ann – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Tom, the OP had an upper respiratory…not sure why the MD even put her on an antibiotic. She mentioned two other people who had pneumonia. The others were just "heard through the grapevine" with no actual numbers mentioned. Why does this sound unusual to you? In the facility I work in, we can have several people with pneumonia in one unit. It can spread easily before it’s actually diagnosed. And many start out with a simple URI. Considering there are thousands of people on a cruiseship, I don’t know why you think something doesn’t sound right. Jo-Ann Pneumonia is more an end point, rather than a beginning point. You start with an infection and it progresses to pneumonia if it’s not treated properly. He may have had a similar infection to the one that caused others to get pneumonia, but with antibiotics, maybe his infection never progressed that far. Why an antibiotic? If it’s a bacterial or mycoplasma infection, the antibiotic (if it’s the right one) will work. But even if it’s a viral, antibiotics can be given to prevent a secondary bacterial infection which often does hit. Plus, anyone with kids might remember… as soon as there’s an upper respiratory infection… how often does it turn into an ear infection? For us it was frequently. It seems like every ear infection in the history of the world starts at night, and usually on a Sunday night, when there are no doctor offices open. And those are almost always bacterial – first you start with the pink stuff… if that doesn’t work you go to the purple stuff. Maybe a few cases of pneumonia is more common than I’m envisioning it… but for a few people to get pneumonia (I did originally say if it was in fact true)… it struck me as out of the ordinary. –Tom
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Tom, just for the record, antibiotics don’t "prevent" a bacterial infection.
Then what do you call prophylactic usage? When I had my hip replacement done, I was given Vancomycin prophylactically. Now when I go to the dentist, I take a cephalosporin prophylactically. You are presuming you would know if something started out viral and went to bacterial. There is absolutely no reason to give somebody with a URI (e.g. cold) an antibiotic. No doctor should be doing that. If and when it develops into a secondary bacterial infection, then antibiotics are in order. BTW, it’s not true that most kids’ ear infections are bacterial. It just isn’t feasible to culture every kid’s ear infection, therefore, MD’s err on the side of caution and prescribe antibiotics. Probably half of those ear infections would go away on their own.
That seems logical. The overuse of antibiotics in this country is having catastrophic fallout. Just wait til you or I really need an antibiotic…and even if WE didn’t abuse it’s use, it will prove useless against most microorganisms.
Agreed. –Tom – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Jo-Ann
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Tom, again, the use of prophylactic antibiotics won’t actually prevent the bacterial infection from starting. But should one occur, you would have a jump on it. It is wise to use prophylactic antibiotics prior to dental procedures for those with certain heart conditions, but I’m not sure I agree with the use of Vancomycin for a hip replacement if no infection were actually present. None of my patients come back from the hospital after hip surgery on antibiotics unless that have actually developed an infection that requires treatment. And I think you would agree Vancomycin is a bit of overkill. I’ve never heard of Vanco being used prophylactically. Are you sure a nosocomial infection wasn’t detected? I still stand by my earlier statement of it not being prudent to put someone on antibiotics for an upper respiratory with the "assumption" it will turn into a secondary bacterial infection. Jo-Ann – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Tom, just for the record, antibiotics don’t "prevent" a bacterial infection. Then what do you call prophylactic usage? When I had my hip replacement done, I was given Vancomycin prophylactically. Now when I go to the dentist, I take a cephalosporin prophylactically. You are presuming you would know if something started out viral and went to bacterial. There is absolutely no reason to give somebody with a URI (e.g. cold) an antibiotic. No doctor should be doing that. If and when it develops into a secondary bacterial infection, then antibiotics are in order. BTW, it’s not true that most kids’ ear infections are bacterial. It just isn’t feasible to culture every kid’s ear infection, therefore, MD’s err on the side of caution and prescribe antibiotics. Probably half of those ear infections would go away on their own. That seems logical. The overuse of antibiotics in this country is having catastrophic fallout. Just wait til you or I really need an antibiotic…and even if WE didn’t abuse it’s use, it will prove useless against most microorganisms. Agreed. –Tom Jo-Ann
Response:
Tom, again, the use of prophylactic antibiotics won’t actually prevent the bacterial infection from starting. But should one occur, you would have a jump on it. It is wise to use prophylactic antibiotics prior to dental procedures for those with certain heart conditions, but I’m not sure I agree with the use of Vancomycin for a hip replacement if no infection were actually present. None of my patients come back from the hospital after hip surgery on antibiotics unless that have actually developed an infection that requires treatment. And I think you would agree Vancomycin is a bit of overkill. I’ve never heard of Vanco being used prophylactically. Are you sure a nosocomial infection wasn’t detected?
When I woke up from surgery I was on Vancomycin IV. I doubt they could have checked for infections that quickly. –Tom I still stand by my earlier statement of it not being prudent to put someone on antibiotics for an upper respiratory with the "assumption" it will turn into a secondary bacterial infection. Jo-Ann
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Tom, just for the record, antibiotics don’t "prevent" a bacterial infection. Then what do you call prophylactic usage? When I had my hip replacement done, I was given Vancomycin prophylactically. Now when I go to the dentist, I take a cephalosporin prophylactically. You are presuming you would know if something started out viral and went to bacterial. There is absolutely no reason to give somebody with a URI (e.g. cold) an antibiotic. No doctor should be doing that. If and when it develops into a secondary bacterial infection, then antibiotics are in order. BTW, it’s not true that most kids’ ear infections are bacterial. It just isn’t feasible to culture every kid’s ear infection, therefore, MD’s err on the side of caution and prescribe antibiotics. Probably half of those ear infections would go away on their own. That seems logical. The overuse of antibiotics in this country is having catastrophic fallout. Just wait til you or I really need an antibiotic…and even if WE didn’t abuse it’s use, it will prove useless against most microorganisms. Agreed. –Tom Jo-Ann
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– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Tom, again, the use of prophylactic antibiotics won’t actually prevent the bacterial infection from starting. But should one occur, you would have a jump on it. It is wise to use prophylactic antibiotics prior to dental procedures for those with certain heart conditions, but I’m not sure I agree with the use of Vancomycin for a hip replacement if no infection were actually present. None of my patients come back from the hospital after hip surgery on antibiotics unless that have actually developed an infection that requires treatment. And I think you would agree Vancomycin is a bit of overkill. I’ve never heard of Vanco being used prophylactically. Are you sure a nosocomial infection wasn’t detected? I still stand by my earlier statement of it not being prudent to put someone on antibiotics for an upper respiratory with the "assumption" it will turn into a secondary bacterial infection.
I received prophylactic Vanco before my last two surgeries. I’m allergic to the "cillins" and Ceclor. Always lightens my pre-surgical mood to watch the staff debate the ototoxic effects of Vanco in front of the already hearing impaired patient. : )
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) — Marina, Frank and Nikki marina (dot) kurten (at) pp (dot) inet (dot) fi Pics at http://uk.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/frankiennikki/ and http://community.webshots.com/user/frankiennikki 
Congrats on the new TV. Vino always loves new additions to the furniture or appliances. So much new stuff to sniff, not to mention the boxes and/or bubble wrap! — Britta Sandpaper kisses, a cuddle and a purr. I have an alarm clock that’s covered in fur! Check out pictures of Vino at: http://photos.yahoo.com/badwilson click on the Vino album 
> Woods 
>My first cell phone was a Sagem MC3000 with build-in speaker phone. >With maximum normal volume it wasn’t loud enough. I had to use the >speaker phone, but then it was too loud. Even for me with my 70dB >loss. Another problem was privacy, well hearing people could follow >the conversation even if they were 10 yards away 