my toe and the doc

The doc didn't like the look of my toe (as seen on cell-phone photos; he didn't examine the toe himself). He prescribed antibiotics, but he recommended that I go see the local orthopede, the same one I've seen before for my stress fracture and frozen shoulder. I went to the downstairs pharmacy and turned in my prescription for antibiotics and other meds (enough to tide me over to my January hospital appointment; I was running short for some reason); since that pharmacy didn't have most of my meds, the lady had to order them. She told me to come back tomorrow to collect my order. But I got my antibiotics.

For the moment, I don't feel in a hurry to visit the orthopede. There's still no smell, and even though the area around the toe wound has some disconcertingly dark discoloration, this isn't the stinking rot or dramatic green-blackness of gangrene, which would spread fairly rapidly.* So for two or three days, I'm going to rely on antibiotics and Epsom-salt foot soaks, and we'll see how things are on maybe Thursday or even Friday. If it's obvious the toe is turning to the dark side, I'll visit the orthopede and then probably go to the hospital for more extreme treatment. But I honestly think this looks worse than it feels.

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*Well, wet and gas gangrene spread fast. There's a third type called dry gangrene that can take days or months to become serious.