Cellulitis is probably a severe infection that starts from lower legs or arms and can enter your bloodstream, threatening your life. If you have proper cellulitis treatment as the symptoms appear, you will recover within two weeks. You need to be preventive to stop the reoccurrence of this skin infection.
Cellulitis is a bacterial infection, which affects the deeper layers of your skin and soft fat. The affected part seems red and swollen. When you touch the affected area, you feel it is warm and painful. A study states that the United States has approximately 14.5 cellulitis cases each year.
Usually, it affects the skin in your lower legs. However, cellulitis can occur on any part of your body, like the arms and the face. It occurs when your skin has a break or crack, allowing the bacteria to enter inside your body. If not treated well, it can be a threat to your life by entering your bloodstream.
Risk factors
You have a higher risk of having cellulitis if you have health issues like:
Age (during or after middle age)
Diabetes
Crack or tear in your skin
Obesity
Circulatory problems, like poor drainage of your veins, a lack of proper blood flow to arms and legs, etc.
Liver problems like cirrhosis and chronic hepatitis
Weakened immune system
And skin issues such as psoriasis and eczema
Types
Based on the location of the infection, cellulitis is of several different types. Some of them are as follows:
Breast cellulitis
Facial cellulitis, which occurs close to the nose, and around cheeks
Periorbital cellulitis, which affects the area around the eyes
Perianal cellulitis, which builds around the anal orifice
Symptoms
Potential signs and symptoms of cellulitis are as follows:
Blisters
Fever
Pain
Red spots
Redness on the affected skin area with a tendency of expansion
Skin dimpling
Swelling
Tenderness
Warmth
Some of you may feel cold sweats, shivering, and nausea.
Complications
Usually, people have no complications. However, if you make any delay in your cellulitis treatment, you can notice severe complications like:
Constant swelling – On a delay in cellulitis treatment, you may have a steady swelling in your affected body part.
Blood infection – It occurs when a cellulitis bacteria enters your bloodstream and can be a threat to your life.
Infection in other body parts – In sporadic cases, cellulitis bacteria spread to other body parts like bones, muscles, and heart valves to infect.
Cellulitis Treatment
In most cases, the use of antibiotics in early treatment is effective and successful. Most of you can get well with the first treatment at home while some of you may need to go to a hospital. Your doctor can suggest you one or more than one of the treatments mentioned below:
Diagnosis – At first, your doctor will do the physical examination of your affected body part. Through this, your doctor will know the warmth and redness of the affected area. Based on the stage, your doctor may want to monitor your body parts suffering from cellulitis. In some cases, the doctor can ask you to have a blood test and the scanning of the infected part.
Medication – In an early to a mild phase of cellulitis, your doctor can advise you to take a dose of antibiotics for 7 to 14 days. You can experience an increase in your problem. However, you can start an improvement in your cellulitis symptoms within two days. Different types of antibiotics (such as Penicillins, Amoxicillin, Amoxicillin & clavulanate, Ampicillin & sulbactam, and Cefazolin) can help you get rid of your problem. Your doctor will prescribe the best antibiotics by having a look at the severity of your cellulitis.
Surgery – Most of the people get well by taking the prescribed dosage of antibiotics. Your doctor will ask you for a short surgery if you have an abscess even after taking the complete dose of the prescribed antibiotics. The doctor will apply a medicine to numb your affected body part and make a small cut to drain the pus out. After the surgery, the doctor will tie a bandage to make the wound heal. You may have a scar for a short period after the healing process.
Prevention – There is a chance of having cellulitis again if you suffer from it once. Your doctor may recommend taking preventive antibiotics and some precautions. Here are some of the precautions that you should consider:
Proper care of cuts or wounds as they occur
Keep your skin moisturised to stay away from cracks or breaks on your skin
Regularly examine your feet
Have a piece of protective equipment while playing or exercising outside
Keep a close watch on your weight and try to keep it healthy one
Limit your intake of alcoholic drinks and avoid smoking
Home remedies – You need to consult a doctor immediately when you notice that the redness or swelling on your skin is expanding fast. Until you see a doctor, you can do the following things to feel relaxed:
Drink enough water
Keep the infected area raised to decrease the pain and swelling
Keep the infected area moving to avoid stiffness
Take pain relief medicine
Avoid wearing socks or stockings until the complete recovery
Apply cypress or thyme oil. People believe that these have antibacterial properties. However, there is no scientific evidence backing the belief.
Usually, it affects the skin in your lower legs. However, cellulitis can occur on any part of your body, like the arms and the face. It occurs when your skin has a break or crack, allowing the bacteria to enter inside your body. If not treated well, it can be a threat to your life by entering your bloodstream.
Risk factors
You have a higher risk of having cellulitis if you have health issues like:
Age (during or after middle age)
Diabetes
Crack or tear in your skin
Obesity
Circulatory problems, like poor drainage of your veins, a lack of proper blood flow to arms and legs, etc.
Liver problems like cirrhosis and chronic hepatitis
Weakened immune system
And skin issues such as psoriasis and eczema
Types
Based on the location of the infection, cellulitis is of several different types. Some of them are as follows:
Breast cellulitis
Facial cellulitis, which occurs close to the nose, and around cheeks
Periorbital cellulitis, which affects the area around the eyes
Perianal cellulitis, which builds around the anal orifice
Symptoms
Potential signs and symptoms of cellulitis are as follows:
Blisters
Fever
Pain
Red spots
Redness on the affected skin area with a tendency of expansion
Skin dimpling
Swelling
Tenderness
Warmth
Some of you may feel cold sweats, shivering, and nausea.
Complications
Usually, people have no complications. However, if you make any delay in your cellulitis treatment, you can notice severe complications like:
Constant swelling – On a delay in cellulitis treatment, you may have a steady swelling in your affected body part.
Blood infection – It occurs when a cellulitis bacteria enters your bloodstream and can be a threat to your life.
Infection in other body parts – In sporadic cases, cellulitis bacteria spread to other body parts like bones, muscles, and heart valves to infect.
Cellulitis Treatment
In most cases, the use of antibiotics in early treatment is effective and successful. Most of you can get well with the first treatment at home while some of you may need to go to a hospital. Your doctor can suggest you one or more than one of the treatments mentioned below:
Diagnosis – At first, your doctor will do the physical examination of your affected body part. Through this, your doctor will know the warmth and redness of the affected area. Based on the stage, your doctor may want to monitor your body parts suffering from cellulitis. In some cases, the doctor can ask you to have a blood test and the scanning of the infected part.
Medication – In an early to a mild phase of cellulitis, your doctor can advise you to take a dose of antibiotics for 7 to 14 days. You can experience an increase in your problem. However, you can start an improvement in your cellulitis symptoms within two days. Different types of antibiotics (such as Penicillins, Amoxicillin, Amoxicillin & clavulanate, Ampicillin & sulbactam, and Cefazolin) can help you get rid of your problem. Your doctor will prescribe the best antibiotics by having a look at the severity of your cellulitis.
Surgery – Most of the people get well by taking the prescribed dosage of antibiotics. Your doctor will ask you for a short surgery if you have an abscess even after taking the complete dose of the prescribed antibiotics. The doctor will apply a medicine to numb your affected body part and make a small cut to drain the pus out. After the surgery, the doctor will tie a bandage to make the wound heal. You may have a scar for a short period after the healing process.
Prevention – There is a chance of having cellulitis again if you suffer from it once. Your doctor may recommend taking preventive antibiotics and some precautions. Here are some of the precautions that you should consider:
Proper care of cuts or wounds as they occur
Keep your skin moisturised to stay away from cracks or breaks on your skin
Regularly examine your feet
Have a piece of protective equipment while playing or exercising outside
Keep a close watch on your weight and try to keep it healthy one
Limit your intake of alcoholic drinks and avoid smoking
Home remedies – You need to consult a doctor immediately when you notice that the redness or swelling on your skin is expanding fast. Until you see a doctor, you can do the following things to feel relaxed:
Drink enough water
Keep the infected area raised to decrease the pain and swelling
Keep the infected area moving to avoid stiffness
Take pain relief medicine
Avoid wearing socks or stockings until the complete recovery
Apply cypress or thyme oil. People believe that these have antibacterial properties. However, there is no scientific evidence backing the belief.
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