Common Infections: Chest, Skin, Ear, Throat and Urinary — GP in Dubai
Infections are the commonest reason to see a GP, and the useful question is not whether you have one but which kind: viral infections that need time and relief, bacterial infections that need the right antibiotic, and the few that need something more. At Smart Care Polyclinic in Deira, a GP examines you, tests where a test changes the plan, and treats what you actually have. The consultation is AED 70.
For: chest, sinus, ear, throat, skin and urinary infections
Takes: a 15-20 minute consultation; swabs, dipstick and bloods on site
Price: consultation AED 70
What it is
Chest and throat infections are mostly viral. The American College of Physicians and CDC advice is specific: no antibiotics for the common cold or for uncomplicated bronchitis in otherwise healthy adults, antibiotics for a sore throat only when a streptococcal test is positive, and antibiotics for sinusitis only when symptoms are severe, last beyond ten days, or worsen after improving.1 Pneumonia — fever, breathlessness, chest pain, crackles on listening — is the bacterial chest infection that does need treatment, and a chest examination and, where needed, an X-ray separate it from bronchitis.
Skin infections are where the decision is drainage or antibiotics. The Infectious Diseases Society of America guideline sets out the approach: impetigo and cellulitis are treated with antibiotics chosen for the likely bacteria; an abscess is treated by draining it, with antibiotics added only in specific circumstances.2 Spreading redness, fever, or an infection on the face or hand is seen the same day.
Urinary infections are diagnosed on symptoms and a dipstick and treated with a short course, with a culture sent when infections recur, in pregnancy, in men, or when the first course fails; the international guideline favours short courses chosen to limit resistance.3 Ear infections in adults are most often the outer canal, treated with drops; a middle-ear infection behind the drum is diagnosed by looking, and treated with antibiotics where the picture warrants it.
When to be seen today
Difficulty breathing, a fever above 39.5°C or lasting beyond three days, a rash that does not fade under a glass, a stiff neck, redness spreading up a limb, an infection on the face, or any infection in someone with diabetes or a weak immune system. These are the cases where the examination changes what happens next, and where waiting is the wrong choice.
Why the GP may say no to antibiotics
Because they do not work on viruses, and every unnecessary course causes side effects now and resistance later. A GP who explains that a chest infection is bronchitis and will settle in two to three weeks is following the evidence, not withholding care. Where a bacterial infection is found or is likely, antibiotics are prescribed the same day.
Tests done in the room
A rapid streptococcal throat swab, a urine dipstick with a sample sent for culture where needed, a wound swab, a blood count and inflammatory markers where an infection is severe or unclear, and a chest X-ray by referral where pneumonia is suspected. Most results are back the same day.
The consultation, and what follows from it
GP consultation
Assessment, examination and a plan with every cost stated before anything further is done.
AED 70 was AED 130
BookFungal skin and nail infections
the dermatologist's guide
Questions patients ask
Usually not. Most chest infections are viral bronchitis, which settles over two to three weeks without antibiotics. Pneumonia, which the GP identifies by examination and sometimes an X-ray, does need them.
Cellulitis and impetigo with antibiotics chosen for the likely bacteria. An abscess by draining it under local anaesthetic, which is the treatment; antibiotics are added only in specific circumstances under the IDSA guideline.
Yes. A dipstick in the room confirms it and a short antibiotic course is prescribed. A culture is sent where infections recur, in pregnancy, in men, or if the first course fails.
This guide is general information, not advice about you. A GP's assessment depends on your history and examination, which is why the consultation exists.
References
- Harris AM, Hicks LA, Qaseem A, et al.. Appropriate Antibiotic Use for Acute Respiratory Tract Infection in Adults: Advice for High-Value Care From the American College of Physicians and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Annals of Internal Medicine. 2016;164(6):425-434. PMID 26785402. doi:10.7326/M15-1840No antibiotics for the common cold or uncomplicated bronchitis; treat sore throat only with confirmed streptococcal infection; reserve antibiotics for sinusitis lasting over 10 days, severe, or worsening after initial improvement.
- Stevens DL, Bisno AL, Chambers HF, et al.. Practice guidelines for the diagnosis and management of skin and soft tissue infections: 2014 update by the Infectious Diseases Society of America. Clinical Infectious Diseases. 2014;59(2):e10-e52. PMID 24973422. doi:10.1093/cid/ciu444The IDSA guideline on diagnosing and treating skin and soft-tissue infections, from impetigo and cellulitis to abscesses, including when drainage rather than antibiotics is the treatment.
- Gupta K, Hooton TM, Naber KG, et al.. International clinical practice guidelines for the treatment of acute uncomplicated cystitis and pyelonephritis in women: A 2010 update by the Infectious Diseases Society of America and the European Society for Microbiology and Infectious Diseases. Clinical Infectious Diseases. 2011;52(5):e103-e120. PMID 21292654. doi:10.1093/cid/ciq257The IDSA/ESCMID guideline on treating uncomplicated cystitis and pyelonephritis in otherwise healthy non-pregnant women, weighing resistance and collateral damage in the choice and length of antibiotic.
Sources are listed for the specific statements they support. They are published research and guidance, not a substitute for a consultation — what applies to you is decided by a doctor who has assessed you.