Is it fair to blame an Insect for… being an insect? It bit me, as insects do. I can only guess it was a spider, but after looking at one too many nasty — EXTREMELY NASTY — insect wounds on the internet, I gave up trying to identify it and turned to medical science to deal with my infected leg.

I’m no stranger to insect bites — I have an insect-magnet dog, after all, and I walk him every day. We live next to forested areas, and I often wear shorts in the summertime. I’ve had some bites before that grew ugly, stung, and swelled a bit before eventually disappearing. But this one was different, because it reacted on Day 2 (Friday), and the reaction was much stronger: redness with area increasing in size, a particular skin behaviour when touched (trust me when I say to AVOID THE TEMPTATION OF SEARCHING BLOOD INFECTION PHOTOS ONLINE), some telltale signs of infection. I decided that seeking medical intervention on a Friday afternoon was more urgent than I’d initially thought.

I called a neighbour (for a second opinion) and couldn’t reach him, so I called Paulo. I knew about the 24-hour health line, but I hadn’t used it myself before. Beyond the explanation of the symptoms, I didn’t know if I should just get myself to the health centre or the hospital or what. He came home, called the number, and the nurse forwarded the information to the local health centre.

It was nearing the end of their working day, and it felt odd to me to be there just two days after a Wednesday visit, to get a doctor’s referral for an ophthalmologist (my vision saga continues as I age). In five years, I’ve only ever gone to the doctor for routine exams. This time both Paulo and I were in the waiting room, listening for my name among the garbled announcements, a first name which is difficult for the average Portuguese to pronounce. All the staff were leaving, one by one, as the clock ticked over to 8pm. We were down to the last three people to be seen, when my name was called shortly after 8 o’clock.

The next part was relatively quick: I showed my leg, the usual questions and answers about medication, some data entry into the computer, and a few minutes later a print-out of the treatment. I didn’t speak much, but when she asked about pain I said yes immediately: it went from 1 to 4 on a scale of 10, just in the waiting room, and I couldn’t bend the leg anymore to sit in a chair. I was glad of the timing, because if anything got pushed to later, I would’ve had to wait at the hospital behind more urgent cases. Which is fair enough, but this was something that could easily be dealt with on a clinic level and not take up a precious spot at a hospital level. It’s a matter of timing.

Since I’m writing this for the benefit of other foreigners who live in Portugal, I’ll include the cost of the medications (I’m registered in public health, so I can’t speak about pricing for those on private plans):

As a Canadian, that price looks low for three medications, but I ask for generics by default and didn’t pay anything for medications while I was working in Canada, even part-time (my company gave me full benefits, including 100% coverage for medication).

This price is probably more interesting to Americans, who are accustomed to paying more for prescriptions, have co-pays and deductibles, and for whom coverage is never 100% (correct me if I’m wrong about this, but I’ve never heard of private insurance that covers 100% of anything, even while I lived in the USA).

I’m pleased to report the medication started working immediately: the pain relief kicked in, the swelling was reduced, the symptoms lessened. Despite the long list of side-effects, I’ve only experienced one: fatigue. But it’s a doozy….

I slept all weekend. Haven’t left the apartment since Friday, not even to walk Ice the Dog. As soon as I ingest the antibiotic, I feel it working and it’s a struggle to stay awake. This is rather alarming to some:

“What bit you?!?”

I don’t know, I really don’t. A neighbour who works at a hospital told Paulo that they’ve had a spate of patients recently with weird bites, but I have no further info about this. I don’t want to mislead the public to thinking there’s a rise of mutant insects!

While the Ibuprofen is no longer necessary, I continue to take the antihistamine and antibiotic. Meanwhile, I’ll cover up arms and legs while walking Ice in the forest and hope this post is helpful to anyone who gets bitten in Portugal and doesn’t know what to do next. Take note of the 24-hour health line and have your health number (Número de Utente) handy:

808 24 24 24

If you do NOT speak Portuguese, access the Telephone Translation Service at 808 257 257, a service provided by the High Commission for Immigration and Intercultural Dialogue, and ask to get in touch with the Health Line 24.

Portuguese National Health Service website: http://sns24.gov.pt/

If you have moved to Portugal and still do NOT have a health number, you will need to get one, but read this Q&A first (it’s in Portuguese) to find out which situation applies to you.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask.

And wear insect repellent!

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