Answered by N. Ashok Viswanath

What causes a firm lump under the armpit that is painful?

Hello doctor,

I popped a boil under my armpit a few days ago. Then yesterday afternoon, I noticed a lump under my armpit. It was swollen and firm. It is not particularly painful, but it aches when I apply pressure. So throughout the day, I used a warm compression on it. There was no fever or other symptoms. It was around the size of a grape, but now it has shrunken to the size of a pea, is no longer painful, and is soft. I have consulted a doctor and have prescribed Capsule Cloxacillin 500 mg three times daily. I suffer from health anxiety, and I constantly check the internet because I am afraid that I could get cancer.

Please assure me everything is alright since my concern is on the roof.

30 Apr 2024 - 1 min read

Will overworking in front of the computer cause body pain and headache?

Hi doctor,

I have a sore throat, and I have body pain, but I do not have any fever at all. Headaches come and go. My eyes feel like it is burning. I am not sure if this is over fatigue by working the whole day with a computer in front of me. I am taking Paracetamol Biogesic. Kindly help me.

05 Mar 2024 - 1 min read

I was tested positive for COVID-19 but my CT value is less. When shall I retest?

Hi doctor,

I was tested positive for COVID-19 in the RT-PCR test before 18 days. Only one day, fever was above 100 degrees Fahrenheit, and after that, there was no fever. I took a capsule Doxy-1 L-Dr forte twice daily for five days, and tablet Limcee 500 mg twice daily, and a tablet Cobadex Czs once daily. I did the RT-PCR test for the second time, eight days before, but the result was positive with a CT value of 31. I have no fever for the last 18 days, and my oxygen saturation is 98 to 99. I did not do a CT scan after that. I have high BP; if I take the tablet Zinconia, my BP increases. When shall I do the RT-PCR retest for COVID-19?

16 Feb 2024 - 1 min read

Can I get an HIV infection through a hangnail wound?

Hello doctor,

Yesterday I was playing air hockey with a friend, and my friend hit the puck pretty hard, and the puck came onto my finger, which had a hangnail on it. I do not know if the puck caused the hangnail, but it came pretty hard. It is approximately 1 mm, red, and not bleeding. My question is if the puck had some blood on it and caused that small hangnail, could this lead to an infection of any blood-borne diseases?

Also, my partner and I bought a home HIV testing kit from a pharmacy that has a disposable lancet to prick the finger for a blood sample. My question is if I should sterilize the lancet before pricking?

Thanks.

25 Jan 2024 - 1 min read

Can you please help me with the small white bumps in my private part?

Hi doctor,

I have a question about something that came out of my body exactly from the private part. I hope it is not something bad or anything. There are a few small white liquid-filled bumps on my private part. I have been taking Penicillin. I am not sure how to explain it.

Can you please help me?

22 Jan 2024 - 1 min read