Impetigo
To heal a wound, you need to stop touching it - Steve Maraboli
image by: Armando Hasudungan
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School Sores or Impetigo, a Horrible Tropical Disease.
I was a scientist back in London, a medical laboratory scientist, specializing in Histopathology. I was a CHIEF medical laboratory scientist, actually. I spent most of my days rummaging about in other people’s body parts, ensuring fixation was perfect, dissecting, processing and making slides.
So not much grosses me out and I’ve got a fair bit of knowledge about all things medical. But I still stuffed up on this one!
This week my son scraped his elbow, it looked a bit manky. Then a wet, oozy sore appeared on his hand. Then one nostril went all funky,
“Stop picking your nose!”
Then the other nostril, then, only a day later, his eyes were bright red and surrounded…
Resources
What are school sores and how do you get rid of them?
Impetigo, or “school sores”, is a contagious infection of the very top layer of skin. It’s most common in children aged two to six, and ends up spreading from child to child in schools and daycare centres, but can affect children and adults of all ages. The good news is that it’s unlikely to cause serious harm. It usually clears up within a few weeks, without any scarring. The usual culprit is the bacterium Staphylococcus aureus, better known as “golden staph”. S. aureus can cause serious infections, and has a fearsome reputation. But the bacteria commonly lives on skin, lurking in the groin and nostrils without causing problems.
Name That Rash
Red bumps or blisters on the palms, fingers, soles of the feet and occasionally around the butt, which can be painful and itchy. Some children will get “these painful red blister lesions on the tongue, gum line and inside the cheeks,” said Dr. Silverberg. Other symptoms can include fever, diarrhea and sore throat. Eating and drinking may become painful.
Impetigo - review
There is strong evidence on the superiority, or at least the equivalence, of topical antibiotics compared to oral antibiotics in the treatment of localized impetigo. In addition, oral antibiotics have more side effects than topical antibiotics.
Why simple school sores often lead to heart and kidney disease in Indigenous children
he bacteria responsible for impetigo are Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus or staph) and Streptococcus pyogenes (S. pyogenes or group A strep). People with diabetes or other conditions that may affect the immune system, such as HIV infection, and those on medications that suppress immunity, are more susceptible. While the infection itself is treatable, if left untreated it can lead to more serious conditions such as cellulitis (infection of the inner layers of skin) or abscess (painful collections of pus that build up under the skin). It can also progress to kidney disease, or it could cause acute rheumatic fever, which can affect the heart, joints, brain or skin.
Impetigo: All You Need To Know
Impetigo is a highly contagious bacterial infection of the surface layers of the skin. There are two forms: bullous impetigo, which is characterised by large, painless, fluid-filled blisters, usually affecting the trunk and limbs, and the more common non-bullous impetigo, which causes sores that quickly burst, leaving behind a yellowish-brown crust.
School Sores or Impetigo, a Horrible Tropical Disease.
Today’s disease is, Impetigo or school sores. It’s so bad I’m going to add it to my list of travel horror stories, I didn’t even have to leave home for this one!
CDC
Impetigo is treated with antibiotics that are either rubbed onto the sores (topical antibiotics) or taken by mouth (oral antibiotics). A doctor might recommend a topical ointment, such as mupirocin or retapamulin, for only a few sores. Oral antibiotics can be used when there are more sores.
Nurse Judy
To prevent infection, any mild cut or open lesion should be kept covered with an antibiotic ointment applied 2 or 3 times per day. If your child has a case of impetigo or has been exposed you may also want to put a thin film of Neosporin or Mupirocin under the fingernails and inside the each nostril twice a day to prevent spreading.
Harvard Health
Impetigo often appears around the nose and mouth. However, it can develop wherever the skin is broken by cuts, scrapes, scratching, or cold sores...
Patient
Impetigo is a common infection of the skin. It is contagious, which means it can be passed on by touching. Most cases occur in young children but it can affect anybody of any age. Antibiotic cream usually clears this type of skin problem quickly. Antibiotic tablets or liquid medicines are sometimes needed.
StatPearls
Impetigo is a common infection of the superficial layers of the epidermis that is highly contagious and most commonly caused by gram-positive bacteria. It most commonly presents as erythematous plaques with a yellow crust and may be itchy or painful. The lesions are highly contagious and spread easily.
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