chatwithketch

Q: Good morning ma’am! Please I need your help. My 18 months old baby has been having boils for the past 3 weeks. I have given him Augumentin for children on doctor’s prescription. But the boils are still coming out. Recently i noticed he urinates too much. What should I do?

A: A boil, also called a skin abscess, is an infection of a hair follicle deep in the skin. Boils can occur in any part of the body, but most frequently in the armpits, groin, around the vagina/anus areas, around a tooth and at the back. They are often swollen, painful, and after a few days collect as a head of pus and debris (this explains what you noticed) which can rupture on their own when soft or ‘ripe’ or may require a health expert to cut it open and drain it (if it’s quite large).

Boils in the…

Q: Hello doc, pls how can one avoid protein in urine during pregnancy?

A: A high blood pressure reading in pregnancy with protein in urine is a worrying situation. Blood pressure readings are interpreted as same, pregnancy or no pregnancy. Any level more than 140/90mmHg is seen as hypertensive. A woman may already be hypertensive before pregnancy and on medication. She may be found to be hypertensive before 20th week of pregnancy in which case it is believed she had previously undetected high blood pressure or she may be discovered to have high blood pressure after the 20th week, in which case it is believed that this high blood pressure is pregnancy-induced (Pregnancy Induced Hypertension: PIH). This would usually resolve within 6 weeks of having a baby. If a woman with PIH goes on to develop protein in urine, she is at risk of preeclampsia (in which protein leaks from…

Q: Hello Doctor. I just put to birth, one month plus now and I am having heavy menstrual flow with clots. A scan had been done but no retained products of conception were found; the uterus is clear. Please what should be done?

A: Bleeding after having a baby is normal. When the placenta separates from the wall of the womb, the open blood vessels start to bleed. And so for the first couple of days there is bleeding composed of blood, bacteria and tissue from the area of separation. In the first few days, the discharge is made up of more blood making it bright red in colour which changes to pinkish and eventually yellowish/whitish as the uterus contracts and seals up open blood vessels. This process is supposed to be over within 2 to 4 weeks. Some may extend to about 6 weeks!

Heavy bleeding that occurs within…

We can’t let the month of October pass by without celebrating the fact that the month is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Breast cancer is abnormal growth of the cells of the breast. Though it is more common in women, it can also occur in men. It is important to examine your breast regularly and note if there are changes. Some changes that may signify cancer, to look out for include:
• A lump or thickening of breast tissue that feels different from surrounding breast tissue
• A lump in one or both armpits
• Change in the skin of the breast eg giving the appearance of orange peel/skin of an orange
• Change in the shape, size or general appearance of the breast
• Nipple discharge (especially if it’s bloody) or recent inversion of the nipple
• Scaly skin around the nipple

Breast cancer may be inherited and so having…

Q:Please I have a question pertaining to cough and catarrh syrup and all that. You made us understand that when a child is given such medication, it depresses the respiratory track or something like that. Please from what age can someone start taking such medication for cough and catarrh? Thank you Ma, awaiting your response. God bless you

A: As a parent, it’s very normal for you to feel worried when your baby is ill especially when it appears you’re helpless and really can’t do anything to help him/her. However, when your baby has a cough, giving cough syrups may not be the way to go…and I’ll tell you why.
First, if your baby’s cough is due to a cold, you really don’t need to give your baby any drug. A cold is a viral infection and once it causes an infection, it will run its course before it stops…

Q: Hi Doc, can yeast infection prevent pregnancy? If you don’t cure it does it go away on its own?

A: Hi dear. Thanks for writing in.

Yeast infections will not prevent pregnancy but interestingly, pregnancy is one of the conditions that can trigger candidiasis. And…it needs to be treated.

Let’s start from the very beginning…

Vaginal candidiasis which is a yeast infection occurs when the fungi which live normally in the vagina overgrow and cause an infection. Usually, there is yeast (fungi) in the vagina and they generally mind their own business until something comes along to disturb the peace of the environment. This disturbance can be in the form of abuse of antibiotics (which kills off the good bacteria that hold the fungi at bay causing them to take over and overgrow the environment) or even in pregnancy (where the estrogen hormone produced in pregnancy messes with the…

Q: Good evening Dr, please why does my breast remain the same even while pregnant and any solution to flattened breast? Thanks

A: Thanks for writing in. Pregnancy affects different people differently, you know. Some people will feel that their bust doubled in size immediately and for others, it’s the opposite J

Please see below, normal symptoms of pregnancy and I’ve also thrown in a bonus…the red flags (symptoms that should make you show up in the hospital immediately).

Breast tenderness: this is inevitable as your breast ducts prepare for the job of lactation. Bra sizes could go up from 1 to several sizes up. Perhaps yours went up just one or perhaps even just remained the same. It is not abnormal. If it does start to increase, be sure to get a good support bra and keep going up sizes as your breast size increases. This will help reduce sagging.

Q: Hallo Dr, please what can be used to reduce gas in the tummy when one is having gas problems?

A: ‘Excess gas’ is produced in the body when we swallow it or when our body produces it as a result of what we have eaten. This is usually caused by the twin factors of what you have eaten and how you chose to eat it.

For what you have eaten, easy culprits are rich, fatty foods, beans, dairy (especially in lactose intolerant people), high fibre foods (if lots of water is not taken afterwards) etc.
How can how you eat cause you a problem?

If you tend to over-eat or rush your food (eat it very fast or like a friend of mine would say, ‘inhale’ it :D), then you are a target for bloating. The reason is that you eat so fast that you don’t give enough time…