Antibiotics

[Mike T]

Hi Mike

yes it's rare but it does happen and both myself and my fell running pathologist friend have seen it (he has seen several cases over the years) - so why chance it? Then there's the potential link with DCM and CFS..... I'm taking the ABx prescription as a likely indicator of severity and/or duration of infection rather than likely causative agent - which IME is often the way it happens (not a side swipe at GPs - think you may be one? - maybe more a reflection of what comes to us with sequae etc). We do of course also see myopericarditis cases who have had a bacterial resp infection. Not trying to cause general panic, just giving my own approach based on some specialist knowledge and experiences - YMMV as they say - but I do shudder a bit to see the widespread "you'll be reet" attitude to training whilst virally ill

Cheers P

A case report or two would be of interest. We are constantly exposed to new viruses, and a lot of the subsequent infections must be subclinical or associated with minimal symptoms. I can remember a lecture on the possibility of coxsackie virus infections being followed by diabetes - the lecturer was asked why we did not have regular blood tests for this, given that in theory treatment of one sort or another might prevent pancreatic damage - he replied that we get so many different coxsackie infections that we would need to have a blood test every week or so. And that is just one type of virus. The points I am trying to make are 1/ that if we did not run every time we thought we had a bit of an infection then some of us would rarely run at all, and 2/ we probably have a subclinical infection from one virus or another going on most of the time anyway.

[stumpy]

Think I followed some of that! With regard to point 1 though - very true! With 2 small kids and the way they exchange germs, I wouldn't run from September to May if I stopped whenever I felt like I might be going down with a virus!!

[paulo]

The points I am trying to make are 1/ that if we did not run every time we thought we had a bit of an infection then some of us would rarely run at all, and 2/ we probably have a subclinical infection from one virus or another going on most of the time anyway.

I agree entirely, particularly point 1 in my own case! But those points I think relate to somewhat different circumstances from when you are clearly really ill, measurably febrile, have a resting pulse 20 over your normal etc. It's the myocarditis being a subclinical part of an otherwise obvious debilitating viral illness.

P