Antibiotics may have been prescribed if the infection is spreading around the wound. But you may not need them to treat a simple abscess. The wound will take about 1 to 2 weeks to heal, depending on the size of the abscess. Healthy tissue will grow from the bottom and sides of the opening until it seals over.
With pustules, your body may be able to slowly absorb and break down the pus without treatment. The pustule may also drain naturally, eventually shrinking and drying up. Smaller abscesses near the surface of the skin may also do the same, but larger ones or those inside the body most often needed to be drained.
It may have a foul odor but that is not always the case. It may have no scent at all. But pus is a natural part of the healing process for wounds. Pus is a sign that a wound is infected but it is also a sign that your body is trying to fight the infection and heal the injury.
Infected cuts and scrapes heal much more slowly than those kept clean and infection-free. One of the best ointments to treat infection is NEOSPORIN® — the #1 doctor recommended brand of topical antibiotic in the US.
Wash the wound immediately by running clean water over it for several minutes. Then, clean the skin around the wound with warm, soapy water. If it is not possible to use clean water, treat the wound with alcohol wipes. Allow the skin to air-dry.
There are four stages of wound healing - Hemostasis, inflammatory, proliferation, and maturation.
It's usually a light pink to red color. This is a sign that your body is healing the wound and isn't a concern in normal amounts. Purulent drainage: Purulent drainage, the thickest of the three types, is white, yellow or brown fluid. It indicates that bacteria entered your wound and caused an infection.
The pus may be drained at home. Soaking a towel in warm water and holding it against the infected pus for 5 minutes will reduce the swelling and open up the pimple or skin abscess for a faster healing process.
A wound that's healing can produce a clear or pink fluid. An infected wound can produce a yellowish, bad-smelling fluid called pus.
A small skin abscess may drain naturally, or simply shrink, dry up and disappear without any treatment. Larger abscesses may need to be treated with antibiotics to clear the infection. The pus may need to be drained.
When bacteria get into a cut, the body's immune system sends white blood cells to fight the infection. It's these white blood cells that can collect and make pus. If pus collects and can't drain out, the area forms a painful abscess.
Wounds need to be covered so that they can heal properly. When a wound is left uncovered, the new surface cells that are being created can easily dry out. When these important cells dry out, it tends to slow down the healing process. A wound should be covered using a clean bandage.
Discharge. After the initial discharge of a bit of pus and blood, your wound should be clear. If the discharge continues through the wound healing process and begins to smell bad or have discoloration, it's probably a sign of infection.
Small abscesses can sometimes burst and heal on their own. However, larger or internal abscesses need to be drained by a doctor (sometimes involving surgery). You may also need to take antibiotics.
Basically, what happens if you don't pop a whitehead is that it goes away on its own, usually in 3 to 7 days. It may happen that you wake up one morning and notice the pimple is gone. Or you may notice the pimple draining.
You should keep a wound moist and covered for about five days.
Antibiotic ointments, such as NEOSPORIN® Original Ointment, can be applied to the wound for 24-hour infection protection. Similarly, SIMPLY NEOSPORIN™ uses only three ingredients – bacitracin zinc, polymyxin B sulfate and petrolatum – to help prevent infection in minor cuts, scrapes, wounds and burns.
Rinse the wound with salt water (saline solution) Drain the pocket of pus (abscess), if present. Pack the wound with saline-soaked dressings and cover it with a bandage.