Via GMA News Online: DOH provides tips in buying medicines for flood-related ailments. Excerpt:
Go for generics, compare prices at drugstores, and report overpricing of medicines to the Department of Health at 711-1001.
These were among the tips the Department of Health provided Sunday to the public amid an expected rise in leptospirosis cases and other flood-related diseases.
“We want the public to be able to make informed decisions and get the best prices on doxycycline and other drugs and medicines,” Health Secretary Enrique Ona said on the department's Facebook page.
Among the medicines is doxycycline, an antibiotic recommended to prevent leptospirosis among those with increased risk of exposure.
The DOH had distributed free doxycycline for rescue and relief teams and residents in evacuation centers.
But the DOH advised individuals with similar risks to consult a physician before taking the medicine.
It also said doxycycline does not totally protect against leptospirosis.
"Those who will develop fever even after taking doxycycline should go to their doctor for examination. Doxycycline is not recommended for pregnant women and children below eight years of age," Ona said.
