What will happen is I Don't take the antibiotics

Hi. I've been diagnosed and been on humera for 3 years. I've had a fistula for about 6-7 years. In december it turned into a terrible abscess. I was put on flagel and the one that starts with "c". They had to drain/lance it twice... terrible pain. I lost ten pounds. I lost that month of my life.

So here we are a few months later and I have a new abscess in a different location. Its higher on my bottom. It is painful. Always.. but not as painful as December. (1-3 vs. a 7-9) It has not been opened up and I really don't want to take the antibiotics again. I'm down to 115lbs and can't seem to bring my weight up.

So if I don't take the antibiotics what will happen? I can't say they helped. I know i should get this lanced, but the thought of all that pain again... then there is the seaton option... but I'm afraid of that too.

They have given me the option to switch to a new bio drug, but no promises there either. I don't know what to do. I do know I don't want another December. And at the end of all this I still want to be able to feel like a girl and have sex with my husband.

Without antibiotics or lancing the abscess it is likely to get bigger and bigger until it bursts on its own. It is unlikely to get better on its own. Most important is that left untreated the infection can get in the blood causing sepsis - which is a dangerous thing. I may be misunderstanding you... why do you want to avoid the antibiotics? Did they make you sick?

I am in complete agreement with Sailorluna. If antibiotics make you sick and I bet they do (they do me) then tell the Dr. They can help you with something to treat nausea. Or make suggestions for you to try to overcome it in another way.

I took antibiotics for 5 years off and on and it didn't help my fistulas. They would get better for awhile, but they would not heal. I recently had surgery, had setons placed, and starting having a lot of puss drainage once again, and was placed on Flagyl and Cipro for three weeks, and again, it helped while I was on it, but now that it's out of my system, I'm back to square one. So the short answer is, the only thing that's going to happen if you don't take the antibiotics is that it will still be there.

I was on flagyl and cipro for three days at the hospital and when I got discharged for 7 days. I was sick..but I felt 100 times better without that abscess open. It is totally worth taking them. I know its not fun, but it will make you feel sooo much better. The doctors will give you something for the nausea, you just have to tell them what you are feeling.

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It is true that on their own antibiotics do not heal fistulas. They can keep infections from getting out of control.

Hey, check out my thread called "lots of blood/pus". I was in the same boat as you. I left my abscess for THREE YEARS because it wasn't causing me problems then in November 2011 it became hell in what seemed like overnight. I think you will find some helpful info on that thread. The C word you're looking for is Cipro. I was on that as well with Flagyl and don't feel it did anything but I had two surgeries for it. The second one being a 7.5" incision.

Feel free to pm me if you need anything.

I have been put on cipro and flagyl a bunch of time for my abscess and fistulas. I don't feel they help me at all. I do take the full course and listen to my GI. They are draining on their own now, and are still painful no matter what.

i have two fistulas from absecces . I was on clindamyacin and Flaygl several times. they only seemed to help at the beginning. My abscess ruptured. I got it drained about a month later as it started to be sore again.

in all honesty after the first two rounds of the antibiotics, i didnt find that helped at all. And my dr said that if they didnt help no poitn in putting my body through that. I found that in all honesty sitting on a heat bag seemed to draw it out faster and helped relieve some of the pain. Also i soaked for hours a day in a sitz bath. Those things gave me more relief then anything.

Now i do have a seton in one fistuala, but not the other. And i do know that there are risks with antibiotics and risks with none. I was put on one round of antibiotics that helped a little but had no side effects for me like the others. the ony thing it wasnt an ana-aerobic drug so i was told that it really wouldnt have done anything. I cannot remember what it was called......

I ache several days a week. esp when i try and do too much. Or even when i dont.....

mine went away after several years, and several rounds of cipro and flagyl. i also quit 6mp and they haven't returned. They seemed to get better every time they would fill and drain. I suffered for several years. Knock on wood they don't return. It's been over 6 months.