Furunculosis is an infectious purulent-necrotic disease of the skin, in which the hair follicle and the surrounding connective tissue are involved in the inflammatory process.
The common name for the boil is boil. The disease can recur, and then its duration is several years.
Only the palms and feet are not involved in the process - places where there are no hair follicles. Most often, the disease develops in spring or autumn. Women and children are less likely to get sick.
Furunculosis is considered a time bomb due to complications that occur if untreated.
Furunculosis - causes
Furunculosis, the causes of which and the main etiological factors are Staphylococcus aureus (in 95% of cases), group A and B streptococci, epidermal streptococcus, etc., is most common in men. Children are also prone to it: their disease often ends in life-threatening complications.
Therefore, furunculosis develops when an infectious agent enters the skin through microtrauma and its active reproduction in the hair follicle.
Usually Staphylococcus aureus, being on the skin of a healthy person, even if there are microcracks, does not cause inflammation. Up to 90% of these microorganisms do not show their pathogenicity in a person with normal immunity and good skin barrier functions. With the development of furunculosis, causes are a combination of local and general damaging factors:
• the local cause is the penetration of an infectious agent into the skin through microtrauma;
• general - sharply reduced immunity.
Predisposing factors in the development of furunculosis are internal (endogenous) factors and exogenous (external).
Failures in the immune system can cause the following endogenous causes:
• chronic diseases - pathology of the kidneys, digestive organs;
• endocrine disorders (obesity, diabetes)
• anemia;
• circulatory disorders;
• exhaustion and hypovitaminosis;
• alcoholism;
• repeated hypothermia or overheating of the body;
• lack of stress resistance;
• frequent psycho-emotional stress;
• the presence of purulent foci in the body of various localization - ENT pathology (sinusitis, tonsillitis, pharyngitis, etc.), intestinal dysbiosis with a predominance of coccal bacteria.
Exogenous factors include:
• the smallest injuries that occur under the influence of particles of coal, metal in the workplace and form the entrance gate for infection;
• friction of clothing in certain places (on the neck, lower back, buttocks), contributing to the transition of bacteria from saprophytic (safe) forms to pathogenic;
• calculations on the skin accompanying itching in case of existing scabies, eczema, dermatitis, neurodermatitis.
It is strictly forbidden to open the boil independently, since this can lead to the spread of infection and its chronicity with relapses.
Furunculosis - the first symptoms
With furunculosis, the first symptoms are:
• the formation of a painful acne (pustule) - one or more;
• infiltration - their compaction - with surrounding tissues;
• purulent fusion of the hair bulb: the formation of a purulent shaft in the pimple itself.
In the future, a boil breaks through, its purulent contents come out. The healing process ends - in its place a scar forms on the skin. In the case of a shallow inflammation, the scar may not form. Most often, large boils are formed in the presence of diabetes.
Purulent - necrotic process is accompanied by furunculosis with signs of inflammation, which are manifested by high temperature, pain at the site of the lesion and intoxication:
• headaches;
• sharp weakness, malaise, fatigue;
• lack of appetite;
• insomnia.
Boils are single, recurring, recurring after some time, and boils, which occur continuously one after another.
1. Recurrent furunculosis is more common in adolescents, in young people with sensitization to staphylococcus (allergic predisposition), in patients with diabetes mellitus, alcoholism, and pathology of the digestive organs.
2. When the course is erased, an infiltrate is formed, which does not suppurate. A necrotic rod does not form when the course is erased.
3. The duration of acute furunculosis from several weeks to two months, manifested by the appearance of many follicles.
4. In the chronic course of furunculosis, signs of the disease are observed for several months: a few boils appear constantly or with short interruptions. On the body there are constantly boils in different stages of inflammation. Regional lymph nodes increase, but the general condition of the body is practically not disturbed.
Complications of furunculosis
The consequences of furunculosis are diverse in their signs and severity of the course.
1. One of the consequences is scar formation. Often a coarse keloid scar is formed with contraction of the surrounding tissue. Exhausted and weakened people may develop an abscess or phlegmon.
2. The appearance of a boil on the upper lip is especially dangerous, since an infection without treatment quickly spreads through the venous and lymphatic vessels with further contact with the meninges and the development of meningitis or sepsis.
With developing purulent basal meningitis, there are:
• severe swelling of the face;
• temperature increase above 400 C;
• stiff neck muscles;
• excruciating headaches;
• impaired vision and consciousness;
• soreness of tightened veins.
This life-threatening condition can end fatally without timely treatment.
3. With sepsis, abscesses can form in many organs (liver, kidneys, etc.).
4. With furunculosis, signs of a complication of the disease can be lymphadenitis - inflammation of nearby lymph nodes.
Factors contributing to the development of complications are:
• impact on the boil - extrusion, piercing;
• shaving injuries;
• the location of boils in the nasolabial triangle;
• self-medication in incomplete volume (use only ointments).
Furunculosis - treatment
With furunculosis, treatment should be comprehensive and include:
• systemic antibiotic therapy;
• medication directly on the focus of inflammation (local treatment);
• immunotherapy;
• surgery;
• proper nutrition.
Prescribing antibiotics is done only by a doctor. Antibiotics of a wide spectrum of action of different groups are used (the doctor decides which drugs are rationally prescribed in each case). The following groups of drugs are used:
• protected penicillins (Flemoksid, Amoksiklav);
• cephalosporins of the latest generations (Ceftriaxone, Cephalexin);
• macrolides (Sumamed, Clarithromycin);
• lincosamides (lincomycin), etc.
The duration of treatment is at least 10 days. Shortening the terms can cause a relapse of the disease and the resistance of staphylococcus to this group of antibiotics.
For local treatment, various drugs are used depending on the stage of development of furunculosis: ichthyol, salicylic acid, chlorhexidine. After purification of the purulent focus of inflammation, Levomikol, Vishnevsky ointment is applied to the cleaned wound. Ointments are applied 2 times a day, covered with a sterile dressing on top.
With the location of furunculosis on the face, bed rest is mandatory in order to prevent the development of complications. The patient should not talk or otherwise strain the facial muscles. Eat only in liquid form. Food should contain enough protein and fiber. You can not use salt and spices, as well as foods that cause allergies: citrus fruits, eggs, seafood, chocolate, etc.
Immunotherapy - for the formation of anti-staphylococcal antibodies in the body, it is prescribed:
• specific immunotherapy - staphylococcal vaccine and toxoid, antistaphylococcal immunoglobulin;
• non-specific immunostimulants (Lycopid);
• multivitamins (Vitrum, Centrum, Complivit, etc.).
With a large boil that has developed, surgical treatment is used: the abscess is opened to accelerate the healing process.
Furunculosis - prevention
With furunculosis, prevention includes exposure to exo - and endogenous factors leading to the onset of the disease:
• refusal of alcohol abuse;
• personal hygiene:
• personal protective equipment at work;
• avoid hypothermia and overheating;
• control diabetes and other existing chronic diseases - avoid decompensation and exacerbations;
• timely treat skin diseases;
• Do not self-medicate.
By supporting his health in this way, it will be possible to avoid the development of furunculosis and its complications.
