Cellulitis and squeezing it?!
Question: Cellulitis and squeezing it.?
hi i have cellulitis for the second time in a few months this time i went to the doctor instead of the er. the doctor gave me an antibiotic told me use a hot compress and to squeeze it. last time i had 3 antibiotics and no squeezing....umm yea i came home and was squeezing it and lots of crap was coming out and it started to feel better but now theres a white line or circle around the red area. am i only making the infection spread more by squeezing it.? help serious answers only please. Health Question & Answer
Answers:
if you're squeezing it -
then you do NOT have cellulitis. You clearly have an abscess.
Abscesses do not get cured by antibiotic therapy - you may temporarily make the redness go away, but the infection will only come back later.
The only correct management of an abscess is to DRAIN it. You really should not do yourself, but the doctor should do this. If no one yet has done this, then I'd suggest you see a local surgeon - just find a general surgeon in the phone book -- it's a 30-second office procedure.
If this were drained properly, you would be cured instantly, with no need for any antibiotics at all.
The danger of squeezing an abscess is that you may cause the bacteria to burst inward - into the blood stream. I've seen it happen !
I'm still amazed that doctors and lay public alike all knew , in the year 1800, that an abscess or boil had to be "lanced". How did we forget this by the year 2008 .? Doctors are in such a hurry that they just give antibiotics for everything. Ask your grandma --- she'll tell you how to treat a boil.Health Question & Answer
then you do NOT have cellulitis. You clearly have an abscess.
Abscesses do not get cured by antibiotic therapy - you may temporarily make the redness go away, but the infection will only come back later.
The only correct management of an abscess is to DRAIN it. You really should not do yourself, but the doctor should do this. If no one yet has done this, then I'd suggest you see a local surgeon - just find a general surgeon in the phone book -- it's a 30-second office procedure.
If this were drained properly, you would be cured instantly, with no need for any antibiotics at all.
The danger of squeezing an abscess is that you may cause the bacteria to burst inward - into the blood stream. I've seen it happen !
I'm still amazed that doctors and lay public alike all knew , in the year 1800, that an abscess or boil had to be "lanced". How did we forget this by the year 2008 .? Doctors are in such a hurry that they just give antibiotics for everything. Ask your grandma --- she'll tell you how to treat a boil.Health Question & Answer
Don't squeeze it, and make sure you wash your hands before and after touching the area!Health Question & Answer