Skin Infections

This website will inform you about different skin infections, such as cellulitis, impetigo, and molluscum contagiosum.

Cellulitis

Cellulitis has the potential to be a very serious bacterial infection of the skin.  The symptoms appear as swollen red areas of skin that feel hot to the touch and tender.  It also may begin to spread quickly.  Generally, the skin of the lower legs is affected by cellulitis, but it can actually occur in any place on your face or body.  The infections on the face are more common in older adults and children.  Cellulitis may only have an effect on the surface of your skin, or cellulitis may affect the tissues that are under your skin as well as spreading to your bloodstream and your lymph nodes.  It is very important that the condition is treated, because if it is left untreated, it can become life-threatening very quickly. 

Symptoms of Cellulitis

Often the symptoms of cellulitis include the skin feeling warm to the touch, feeling very tender, and appearing to be read and swollen.  You may also have a fever along with the skin changes.  As time goes by, the red area may begin to expand.  You may also see that there are some red spots on top of the skin that have become reddened, and additionally small blisters may also form and then burst too.

Causes of Cellulitis

Two or more forms of bacteria have to enter through a break or a crack in your skin in order for cellulitis to occur.  The two most common of forms of bacteria are staphylococcus and streptococcus.  Methicillin resistant MRSA is also continuing to increase.  Even though it can occur anywhere on your body, it is most likely to occur on your legs, particularly near your ankles and your shins.  The disrupted parts of your skin, like where you have had surgery, puncture wounds, cuts, ulcer, dermatitis, or even athlete's foot, are more vulnerable areas for cellulitis to enter your body.  Additionally there are a few types of spider or insect bites that have the ability to transmit this bacteria that begin the cellulitis infection.  Flaky and dry skin can also be an area that bacteria can attack.

There are several risk factors that increase your chances of developing cellulitis.  For example the older you get, the greater chance you have since your circulation tends to get poorer as you get older, and skin abrasions can cause infections when you do not have good blood circulation.  Secondly, if you have a weak immune system, you are at increased risk.  Some examples of illnesses that provide you with a weak immune system include HIV, chronic lymphcytic leukemia, and also taking immune-suppressing drugs.  If you have diabetes, you are at increased risk because it increases your blood sugar level and impairs your immune system, causing you to be at an increased risk of developing an infection.  Your skin is one area that can develop an infection easily.  If you have had shingles or chickenpox, you may have broken blisters on your skin that may become entry points for the invasion of bacteria and infection.  If your arms and legs have become frequently swollen, the swollen tissues may crack, and this may allow bacteria to get in.  Fungal infections of your feet can also cause cracks to occur, which open up your feet for bacterial invasion.  Finally, if you use drugs intraveneously, you are at increased risk. 

Treatment of Cellulitis

If you learn that you have cellulitis, the treatment may include a prescription oral antibiotic.  After beginning the antibiotic, your physician may want you to come back only one or two days following the start of the antibiotic in order to determine if the infection is going to be responding to the antibiotic prescribed.  You will have to take the antibiotic for 10 to 14 days.  In the majority of cases, the signs and symptoms of cellulitis will disappear after only a few days, and if the symptoms do not clear up, you may need hospitalization.  Most doctors will choose an antibiotic that will be effective against staphylococci and streptococci.  It is very important that you continue the medication for the entire time as directed and that you finish the whole course of the medication, even though you may be feeling better before the dose is finished. 

Prevention of Cellulitis

There are things you can do to help prevent skin infections as well as the specific skin infection of cellulitis.  First, you need to wash your wound every day using soap and water, and be sure to do this gently.  Use an antibiotic ointment or cream for surface wounds.  Use a dry, sterile bandage to cover your wound.  This will help to keep any potential bacteria out.  This is especially important if your blisters are draining.  You should also change your bandages frequently, and that means whenever it becomes dirty or wet, and at minimum once a day.  Observe your wound and look for changes.  If you feel pain, see drainage, and observe unusual redness, you may have an infection, and if you are unsure, it is best to be safe and have it checked out.  If you have diabetes, you need to have special caution. 

Impetigo

Impetigo is a very contagious infection of the skin that usually affects children and infants.  It normally looks like red sores on the face, typically around the nose and mouth.  It generally happens when bacteria enter into the skin through insect bites or cuts, but it is also able to develop in healthy skin too.  Normally impetigo is not serious, and it often will clear up on its own in just about two to three weeks of time.  However, since it can lead to other complications, your child's physician may wish to treat the condition using an oral antibiotic or antibiotic ointment.  Your child should be able to go back to school or child care once he or she is no longer contagious, which occurs after twenty-four hours of beginning antibiotics.

There are a few signs and symptoms of impetigo.  First, there may be itching and blisters that are full of pus.  The red sores may rupture quickly and ooze, followed by the formation of a yellowish-brown crust.  When it is more serious, the painful pus filled sores may become deep ulcers.

There are a few types of impetigo. 

First, there is impetigo contagiosa.  This is the most common type of impetigo, and it usually begins as a red sore located on the face of your child, probably around his or her nose and mouth.  Then the sore will ooze pus or fluid quickly which will form a crust that is honey-colored.  Then the crust will disappear, and a red mark will be left.  The sores should not be painful, but likely will be itchy.  With this type of impetigo, your child will probably not have a fever, but he or she may have swollen lymph nodes.  This is because it is very contagious. 

The second type of impetigo is called bullous impetigo.  This form usually affects children and infants that are younger than two years old.  It shows up in painless blisters that are full of fluid.  It is often found on the legs, arms, and trunk of the child.  The skin that surrounds the blister is normally red and itchy, but it is not sore.  The blisters, which may break and scab over with a crust that is yellow, may be small or large, and these may last longer than the sores from other forms of impetigo.

The third type of impetigo is called ecthyma.  This is a serious form of the condition.  It goes deep into the dermis, or the second layer, of your skin.  Some of the symptoms of this form of impetigo include pus filled sores that are painful and turn into deep ulcers, and they are often located on your feet and legs.  These sores break open and then scab over with a gray-yellow crust that is hard.  The scars will stay even after the sores are healed.  This can also cause swollen lymph glands.

Causes of Impetigo

There are two different types of bacteria that can result in the condition of impetigo.  First, there is staph, known as staphylococcus aureus, and then there is streptococcus pyogenes, known as strep.  These two forms of bacteria are able to live on your skin harmlessly until they are able to enter your skin via a wound or other cut and then cause an infection to occur.  With adults, impetigo tends to be the result of an injury to skin, and this is often the result of dermatitis.  Many children are affected because of an insect bite, scrape, or a cut; however, they can also develop this condition when they do not have any other damage to their skin.  You are exposed to impetigo causing bacteria when you are in contact with the sores that someone has who is infected with the condition or with items that the person has touched.  These items include bed linen, towels, clothing, and toys.  Once you have been infected with this, you are able to spread the infection to other people.  Staph bacteria creates a toxin that causes impetigo to spread to skin nearby.  This toxin attacks a protein that assists with binding the cells of the skin together.  Once the protein of the skin has been damaged, the bacteria is able to spread fast.

There are several risk factors for developing impetigo.  Children who are of the ages of two to six years old as well as infants tend to be the most affected.  Children are the ones who are the most affected because their immune systems have not yet developed all the way.  Since strep and staph bacteria are successful in groups of people who are close together, impetigo has the potential to spread very quickly and easily in child care and school settings.

Treatment of Impetigo

Doctors will determine how to treat impetigo based on a variety of factors.  They will consider the type of impetigo present as well as how severe the infection is.  The treatments for this condition include the following:

Topical antibiotics:  A prescription antibiotic that you apply to the areas of the impetigo may be applied to help the infection.  Before you apply a topical antibiotic, you need to remove any scabs gently so that the antibiotic is able to get into the sore.

Oral antibiotics:  These are taken by mouth and are used when the impetigo is widespread.  The antibiotic chosen will depend upon how severe the infection is.  It is important that you continue the entire course of the antibiotic.

Hygienic treatments:  Your doctor may be able to choose to treat minor cases with hygienic measures.  By keeping the skin clean, you can assist with the infections healing on their own.  

Additionally, there are some home remedies you can try to assist with the healing process.  First, you can soak the affected areas of the skin using a vinegar solution of one pint of water and one tablespoon of white vinegar for twenty minutes of time.  This helps to remove the scabs.  Second, after you wash the area, you should apply an over the counter antibiotic for three or four times per day.  Before applying the ointment, wash the skin and then pat the skin dry.  You should also avoid touching the sores and scratching the sores until they are healed.  Using a nonstick dressing to cover the sores can also be helpful to keep the condition from spreading.

Prevention of Impetigo

In order to keep your skin healthy, it must remain clean.  If you have a scrape, cut, insect bite, or other wound, it is necessary to wash the affected area and also apply an antibiotic ointment in order to prevent infection from occurring.  If someone in your family has impetigo, you should try to keep the infection from spreading by keeping it covered, washing the infected person's clothing daily and not sharing them, wearing gloves when applying antibiotic, cutting nails short to prevent scratching damage, washing hands frequently, and keeping your child at home until the condition is no longer contagious.

Molluscum Contagiosum

This is a common viral infection of the skin that is most common in children.  It has firm papules that are not painful and typically will disappear within a year without any treatment.  However, if the papules are injured or scratched, the infection can spread to other skin surrounding it.  Even though this condition is common with children, it can be found in adults too.  In adults, molluscum contagiosum in the genital areas is considered to be a sexually transmitted disease.  It can be spread through person to person contact as well as contact with objects that have been contaminated.  Since it spreads easily, doctors will recommend medical treatment.  

Symptoms of Molluscum Contagiosum

This skin condition results in round, raised, flesh colored bumps present on the skin.  These papules are usually about two to five millimeters in diameter and have a small indentation or a dot at the top.  They can easily appear inflamed and red.  By rubbing them, you can easily remove them, but doing this will cause the virus to spread.  With children, the papules are usually on the face, armpits, hands. arms, and neck.  With adults, the condition may be a sexually transmitted disease that is seen on the lower abdomen, the genitals, the buttocks, and the upper thighs. This condition is not related to genital warts.

Causes of Molluscum Contagiosum

This condition is the result of an infection of the molluscum contagiosum virus.  This virus is able to spread easily though contact with objects that are contaminated and through skin to skin contact.  It is also able to be spread through sexual contact with a partner who is affected.  Shaving, as well as rubbing or scratching the papules can also lead to spreading of the virus.

If you believe that you or your child may have molluscum contagiosum, you need to contact your physician or a dermatologist.  The infection can be diagnosed by examining the papules.  

Treatment of Molluscum Contagiosum

People who have a normal immune system will not have problems becoming healthy once again in around six to twelve months.  However, it may take years to go away forever, and for children without fully developed immune systems, it may take longer.  Since it spreads very easily, doctors will often recommend medical treatment, particularly for adults.  Treatment for the condition may include freezing, laser therapy, or scraping and curettage.  

Prevention of Molluscum Contagiosum

In order to prevent molluscum contagiosum from spreading, you should avoid scratching, rubbing, or touching the papules.  Shaving can also cause it to spread.  You should not allow others to use your personal items, such as towels, clothing, hairbrushes, and other personal property. You also should avoid sex if the papules are untreated and unresolved.