My mobile pharmacy

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My Medkit

by powerkraut

As mentioned in my introduction thread here is the list of medications that I carry on holidays abroad. First field test occurred in November 2012 when I was travelling across Vietnam and Cambodia. I am a pharmacist by profession, I suffer from mild asthma and several minor but annoying allergies, and I have the semi-suicidal habit of approaching every cute and cuddly animal that crosses my path. (So far I haven’t touched any, but you never know…)

• Cetirizine 10 mg tablets
  All-purpose antihistamine that works great for me. I carry a pack of 50 normal tablets and keep three or four orodispersible tablets (like lozenges, no water needed) close and always on me.
• Clarithromycin 500 mg tablets
  Standard antibiotic that has a rather wide spectrum both in anti-bacterial activity and in medical conditions, from chest infections to intestinal problems. I know I tolerate it well and it worked before, and most of all, I had it lying around from the last trip. It will be replaced by Azithromycin for the next time – it’s better, has less resistances, only a three day course.
• Ciprofloxacin 500 mg tablets
  For cases I consider more severe, if the Clari didn’t work at all or if the urinary tract is affected. Also because I still had it at home; if forced to decide for just one AB, I would pick Azithromycin because Cipro’s many side effects are a bit of an inconvenience.
• Dimenhydrinate 50 mg tablets
  First generation antihistamine, mainly to prevent (motion) sickness and nausea. Also great for long distance flights due to its still prominent sedating properties. I would never recommend combining one tablet of dimenhydrinate with one beer, but I slept all the way from Frankfurt to Hanoi… Note the photo-sensitizing side effects, though.
• Dimenhydrinate 150 mg suppositories
  As above; in those cases I am unable to swallow or keep anything down.
• Tannacomp® tablets
  German product against diarrhoea, combining tannic acid (bound to albumin) and ethacridine lactate. The former precipitates proteins in your intestines, thereby reducing loss of fluids, the latter is slightly antiseptic, fighting infections. I did decide against probiotics such as Saccharomyces or Lactobacillus, because they lose their activity rather fast at temperatures over 25 °C. I took it as a form of prophylaxis, one tablet twice a day.
• Malarone® tablets
  I had to choose one malaria drug to carry as a stand-by. Area not dangerous enough to take prophylaxis regularly, and after taking mefloquine (Lariam®) years ago and experiencing all its psychic side-effects first hand I’d rather have malaria, thank you very much.
• Paracetamol 500 mg tablets (Acetaminophen in the US)
  My standard analgesic for headaches and other minor aches and pains, average consumption: three tablets per year. Well tolerated, efficient enough for my and my partner, safe for asthmatics, reduces fever, and aspirin makes me nauseous, anyway.
• Salbutamol inhalers (Albuterol in the US)
  Did I mention I am an asthmatic? I brought two inhalers and kept them in different bags. Didn’t really need them, but since this is an EDC forum, I’m sure you will understand.
• Metamizole 500 mg tablets
  A more powerful analgesic and antipyretic than paracetamol. Just for emergencies, really. Mainly carried for severe cases of fever associated with hemorrhagic conditions such as dengue because it has little anticoagulant activities (as opposed to aspirin). Also it is nowhere near an opioid in structure or effects, so it should be safe enough to carry even in countries with slightly idiotic legislation.
• Loperamide 2 mg tablets
  Everybody carries Imodium® on holidays, so why not me. I do not like it (and I do not recomment it), as I think it is better to let everything potentially pathogenic get out of my body instead of stopping my intestines, but for those cases where I just can not get to any toilet for hours it has its uses.
• Prednisolone 10 and 50 mg tablets
  Steroid tablets for severe allergic reactions. Life saver. I keep 2×50 mg always on me.
• Fucicort® (Fucibet®)
  An antibiotic cream combining fusidic acid with betamethasone as a local corticosteroid. I have seen some tropical ulcers, when a tiny scratch turns into something nasty and festering because of the local microbial flora which is radically different from everything I might encounter at home. Great for insect bites – keeps them rather germ free and prevents itching and scratching. Also nice to have if one suffers from the occasional eczema.
• Octenidine 50 ml spray bottle
  A disinfectant for wounds. Has a wide spectrum of activity, does not sting or burn. I usually carry some disinfectant wipes on me, too.
• Bifonazole 1 % ointment
  An antimycotic cream might be useful, if I have to wear clothes or hiking boots for extended periods of time without access to showers and washing machines, but with plenty of new fungi trying to make friends. As someone on this forum said: “Crotch rot is not a joke!”
• Ofloxacine eye drops
  Antibiotic eye drops for the treatment of eye infections. I went for the drops in a multi dose bottle: I am not likely to open it or need it anyway, but if I do, I will use it regularly and discard it after treatment. Since I do tolerate preservatives quite well, it seems the better option for me than unpreserved single-dose vials. They will get contaminated quicker than at home (I suppose), they take up more space and are more expensive, so there is really no advantage for me.
• Powdered vegetable broth
  This is not a joke. I carry about ten sachets of one-mug-portions of powdered soup. They provide electrolytes in case of diarrhoea, they warm your bones and provide an entirely un-medical but highly valuable feel-good factor.

Most of this is packed in a sturdy and fairly waterproof freezer box of Japanese origin. Something like Tupperware, I guess, but I like the lid closure better, and this box has travelled with me across the world for about 25 years now. It usually stays in my backpack (in the car or at the hotel), and in my hip bag I have a plastic case for the most needed stuff:

• 2 x 50 mg Prednisolone
• 4 x 50 mg Diphenhydramine
• 5 x 400 mg Ibuprofen (just because they are so neatly packed and fit so well…)
• 10 x Tannacomp (so I don’t have to open le big box all the time)
• 4 x Cetirizine 10 mg lozenges
• Some band-aids, including Compeed® hydro colloid patched for blisters

There is a completely separate first aid kit bought off the shelf that mainly stays in my suitcase. It contains some syringes and needles which obviously mark me as a dangerous terrorist so I cannot risk losing it to some airport drone.

Any suggestions for improvements are welcome.

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