OK. I'm not a doctor but I can read and I can think. I question whether the use of steroids (Prednisone) is appropriate for every (or even most) cases of poison oak. These steroids work by suppressing the immune response. In other words, they attack the symptoms. Now, of course, if the patient is affected to where he or she is having trouble breathing, then the steroids are wonderful and their use is quite defensible. But in the absence of a life-threatening immune response (such as difficulty breathing), couldn't we argue that steroids actually make things worse...that they actually LENGTHEN the time it takes for our bodies to overcome the poison? Like many people, I went to a doctor and didn't even know what the rash was. I had assumed it was from flea bites or even from the bite of an exotic spider. Before I had time to "digest" the diagnosis and ponder my options, the doctor had injected me with steroids and prescribed a fat dose of oral Prednisone. I'm truly sorry now that I trusted this doctor's judgement. My outbreak is on my lower right leg. When I went to the doctor I was uncomfortable but I was not sick. Now I'm uncomfortable AND sick and worried and confused about which of my symptoms are related to the poison oak and which to the use of steroids (which I have discontinued)! I wonder why people are so ready to take Prednisone...a compound known to have horrible "side effects", especially from long-term use. If I knew then what I know now, I would have opted for a very conservative (topical) treatment for MY poison oak. I understand that others may have cases SO severe that more aggressive treatment IS warranted.
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