Cellulitis is a deep skin infection caused by staph or streptococcus (strep) bacteria, including MRSA. Cellulitis leads to redness, swelling, pain and heat in the skin, sometimes in a large, diffuse area.
One type of staph infection that involves skin is called cellulitis and affects the skin's deeper layers. It is treatable with antibiotics. This type of infection is very common in the general population -- and more common and more severe in people with weak immune systems.
Sometimes the bacteria get into the body through openings in the skin, like an injury or surgical wound. In general, people cannot catch cellulitis from someone else; it is not contagious.
Cellulitis is an infection that occurs in the subcutaneous tissues. It can be caused by multiple bacteria, but this page will focus on cellulitis caused by Streptococcus pyogenes, which is also called group A Streptococcus (group A strep).
MRSA Skin Infection: Cellulitis
Cellulitis can spread quickly over a few hours. The skin looks pink or red, like a sunburn, and may be warm, tender, and swollen. The condition usually affects the legs and arms, but not exclusively.
Staphylococcus and streptococcus bacteria are the most common causes of cellulitis. Normal skin has many types of bacteria living on it. When there is a break in the skin, these bacteria can cause a skin infection.
About cellulitis
Cellulitis is an infection of the deeper layers of skin and the underlying tissue. It can be serious if not treated promptly. The infection develops suddenly and can spread through the body quickly. Severe infections can spread deep into the body, and can be life threatening.
The fastest way to get rid of cellulitis is to take your full course of antibiotics. Some home treatments may help speed up the healing process. Home treatments include: Warm compress.
Antibiotics commonly prescribed to treat staph infections include cefazolin, nafcillin, oxacillin, vancomycin, daptomycin and linezolid. For serious staph infections, vancomycin may be required. This is because so many strains of staph bacteria have become resistant to other traditional antibiotics.
The best antibiotic to treat cellulitis include dicloxacillin, cephalexin, trimethoprim with sulfamethoxazole, clindamycin, or doxycycline antibiotics.
With proper treatment and care, small patches of cellulitis can heal in around five or seven days. However, the healing process is largely influenced by the severity of your cellulitis as well as your current health condition. For example, severe cases of cellulitis can last for multiple weeks despite treatment.
People who frequently injure their skin: Research shows that the following people, who tend to have more skin injuries, often have a higher risk of getting cellulitis: Athletes. Children.
When to seek urgent care. If redness, swelling or pain intensify over the next 24 hours, see a health care provider immediately. “If you're 48 hours out and have increased redness, that's a huge red flag,” Jake said. Other symptoms can include blisters, bruising, headache or red streaks tracking from the wound.
Wash the area with clean water 2 times a day. Don't use hydrogen peroxide or alcohol, which can slow healing. You may cover the area with a thin layer of petroleum jelly, such as Vaseline, and a non-stick bandage. Apply more petroleum jelly and replace the bandage as needed.
Cellulitis is considered an emergency when the infection begins to spread and become severe. Severe symptoms that indicate an emergency—and necessitate immediate medical care—include fever, chills, the affected area turning black, and numbness or tingling of the affected area.
Most cases of cellulitis are caused by the bacteria that naturally live on the surface of our skin, like staphylococcus and streptococcus. But sometimes, cellulitis is caused by a less common bacteria. This means that it may not respond to typical antibiotics and might need a different type of antibiotic.
Such breaks in the skin allow bacteria to enter and grow, causing infection. Many cases of cellulitis are mild and the involved skin clears completely with antibiotic treatment. However, some cases of cellulitis can be severe and lead to generalized infection.
However, cellulitis symptoms often get worse before they get better, probably because, with the death of the bacteria, substances that cause tissue damage are released. When this release occurs, the body continues to react even though the bacteria are dead.
Tips include: drinking plenty of water. keeping the affected area raised to help reduce swelling and pain. regularly moving the affected part of the body to help prevent stiffness.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advise that when someone has cellulitis, the affected area of skin may look pitted like an orange peel or develop blisters. As the condition starts to heal, the skin may return to its typical appearance without blisters.
Severe Cellulitis
Features suggestive of necrotising fasciitis include: severe pain out of keeping with apparent severity of infection. rapid progression. marked systemic features (eg high fever with rigors, tachycardia, tachypnoea, hypotension, confusion, vomiting).
Why is cellulitis so painful? The infection in the skin causes swelling. It is this swelling that is painful, because it presses the skin out.
Signs that the infection is healing include: Decreased swelling. Lightening of the rash's color (cellulitis often appears purple, gray or brown on darker skin tones and red or pink on light skin tones) Reduced pain or tenderness.