Hello Serena, you could try the NSC – they have it at a subsidised rate, but you will need a referral letter from a clinic, which takes some time. Otherwise it will be a private rate.

I do agree with what Dr Ethan and Dr Jasmine have written about the risk of colchicine in breastfeeding. For treatment of oral lichen planus, there are many other treatment options available apart from colchicine and you should speak to your doctor and raise your concerns about the use of colchicine while you are breast-feeding and explore if alternative options are available for you.

Hi Jing Ni, Natural does not always equate to safety. We have heard of poisonous plants and fruits in the nature which can have detrimental effects when consumed. However, the herbs that a physician prescribes has been used over thousand of years and proven to be safe. In addition, Chinese proprietary medicines (CPMs) are regulated by the Health Sciences Authority of Singapore (HSA) and manufacturers of medicinal herbs are obliged to ensure they comply with local regulations, free of heavy metals and adulteration with substances under the Poisons Act and/or active synthetic substances.

Patients are advised to take them separately to prevent potential drug-drug interactions. It occurs when a compound affects the activity of a drug when both are taken together. If one increases the effect of another, an overdose may occur or the side effects profile may be intensified. Similarly, if the efficacy of a drug is reduced, it will not elicit a therapeutic response and can be dangerous in some instances (e. g. diabetes).

Welcome to Singapore! The best course of action for you would be to: 1. Check if your particular brand/type of medication is licensed for sale in Singapore. – You can search the database of registered medicines in Singapore on the official government site here. Example of search result below: – Alternatively, this other database search which is run independently by a Singaporean pharmacist is more straightforward to use. 2.

Yes you will need to obtain a prescription for Atropine 0. 01% eyedrops from a licensed doctor or clinic to treat myopia in Singapore. You may want to check out Dr Por's answer here for more advice about Atropine eyedrops: Is Atropine 0. 01% for myopia licensed in Singapore? In summary, doctors in Singapore cannot prescribe it for anyone except their own patients whom they have seen and determined that the medicine is necessary. Neither is this medicine available over the counter at pharmacies.

Thank you for your question. In principle, yes any doctor is allowed to prescribe Norethisterone. Most GP clinics in Singapore will be carrying them. The GP must be “sufficiently satisfied” that there is a good enough reason that you are taking it. The GP must be “sufficiently satisfied” that all potentially dangerous conditions have been excluded. Which boils down to, please make sure you know your own medical condition, previous lab reports or scans before going down to ensure success. Take care.

I understand from your question that you may be suffering from a type of acne called nodular cystic acne? Aczone is a possible treatment option but is quite outdated and not a first line topical medicine for acne. This drug review shows that it has lower response rate that currently available treatment options. There are good oral and topical treatments available for nodular cystic acne. I would advise a proper consult with your dermatologist or aesthetic doctor for an assessment and treatment, so as to prevent the scars they leave behind.

My experience is that I use 10-20mg daily for 1-2 months, then start to adjust or tail down after that. I warn patients of flares in the first 4-6 weeks, which is really common. I think that Benzoyl peroxide should be avoided. Also, you should consider moisturising more actively. I like Serums, including the Skinceuticals B5 hydrating serum which my patients on Isotretinoin seem to like. It's light and moisturising at the same time. Don't give up! The light is at the end of the tunnel. Been through that too!

Norethisterone isn’t really a drug that is meant for Long term use. More common uses for norethisterone is for example in dysfunctional uterine bleeding, delaying of periods and for endometrial protection when on estrogens. However common side effects include bloating and mood swings. There are better alternatives if it is required for medium to Long term use eg the levonorgestrel releasing iucd (Mirena) or the oral contraceptive pill. Please discuss this with your gynae.

That's a great question. First things first, if you are ever unsure whether medication is safe for you to take or not, ALWAYS check with your friendly neighbourhood pharmacist. In general, your doctor is not incorrect to say that certain types of medications can be taken past its expiry date. The expiration date of a drug only indicates the date whereby the drug must be at least 90% of the original potency under proper storage conditions. The expiration date does NOT indicate a point when a medication becomes harmful. Expired medication does not "go bad" in the same way that food does.

There is no hard and fast rule for this. It is generally prescribed as an adjunct to diet and exercise in suitable individuals. If the BMI is very high (>30 kg/m2 or >27 kg/m2 with other risk factors like diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure) then the benefits of treatment may outweigh the risks. This is generally a short term measure. If an individual's BMI is not that high but has other complications of weight gain (physical/psychological), and treatable causes of weight gain have been excluded, then a short course of this may be considered.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to address this issue. Traditional Chinese Medicine is broadly classified into two types: Medicinal materials (from plants, animals, or minerals in their natural states, or in processed forms that have undergone simple processing, such as trimming or desiccation. Chinese proprietary medicine (CPM) (finished form such as capsule, tablets and granules). Currently, only CPMs are subject to pre-market approval and licensing for their import and sale in Singapore.

Yes, atropine 0. 01% is indeed licensed and legal in Singapore, and dispensed by private and public eye centres, such as the Singapore National Eye Centre. Do note that it is NOT used to TREAT myopia, ie it cannot REVERSE myopia. It’s purpose is to PREVENT the worsening of myopia in children, typically from the ages of 6 – 12 years old. The reason why it’s not available in other countries, is likely because Singapore was one of the first countries to demonstrate that very low dose atropine (0. 01%, as opposed to 0.

Any doctor who sees you in Singapore is required to take notes detailing the reason and nature of your visit. So yes, there will be a record that you had a prescription for a Plan B pill in Singapore, at least at the clinic you visited. There is a soon to be introduced National Electronic Medical Record system (NEHR) that will mean that your doctor will input all these details into a centralised online record. This was previously only optional (meaning the doctor and clinic could choose not to input patient data into this system), but will soon become compulsory.