All About Cellulitis- The Skin Infection

All About Cellulitis- The Skin Infection

C.D. Mohatta
October 24, 2007

Cellulitis - Overview

Cellulitis is a bacterial infection of the skin. Cellulitis generally affects only one limb, but can also affect other parts of the body. The skin may become red, swell, warm and have other clinical features. Cellulitis may create complications if left untreated. Therefore it is necessary, that we find out more about what is cellulitis.

Cellulitis Symptoms

Cellulitis commonly affects one limb. The skin appears red with swelling and blisters may form. The affected limb becomes tender. There is a feeling of warmth on the affected site. Abscesses may also form on the affected site and the lymph glands may swell to drain the infection. Fever may also develop with cellulitis.

Cellulitis Causes

A bacterial infection causes cellulitis. Streptococcus pyogenes causes most of the cellulitis. Staphylococcus aureus also causes many cases of cellulitis. These are bacteria that attack the skin and cause inflammation and swelling.

The bacteria normally cause more trouble to those, who are weak and vulnerable for various reasons. Diabetics have lesser immunity than others. Diabetics may form chronic ulcers of the feet and these ulcers are vulnerable to bacteria entry.

Some people may be on immune suppressant drugs for some diseases. Their immune system gets suppressed and bacteria can easily flourish if they find an entry in such people. Many diseases such as AIDS, etc. also suppress the immunity and make the person more vulnerable to bacterial attack. I

If you have a healthy immune system, your body can easily fight the bacterial infection. As your defense becomes weak, the bacteria find it easy to attack you. The same is true with aged people, because their blood circulation becomes poor and the body is unable to send the required number of white blood cells to all parts of the body.

If you have chronic problems such as athlete's feet, bacteria find it easy to enter the body via the cracked and peeling skin.

Complications

The face and lower legs are common places affected by cellulitis, but note that any part of the body can get affected. Many complications may arise with cellulitis.
If the infection enters the deeper layers of the body issue, it can cause serious complications. Once the bacteria enter the deeper layers, it spreads rapidly in the body. By entering the blood stream and the lymph nodes, the bacteria causes big harm to the body. The major complications of unchecked cellulitis can be meningitis (if cellulitis is on the face), sepsis, gangrene, etc.

Cellulitis treatment

Topical and oral antibiotics are commonly used to treat the early cases of cellulitis at home. If the infection is severe, hospitalization is recommended and intravenous antibiotics are administered.

For further advice, consult your doctor.

Precautions:

If you are susceptible to frequent cellulitis or are immune depressed, take care to prevent it.

Treat fungal infections immediately.

Protect yourself from the smallest skin injury by wearing protective clothing and shoes.

Moisturize the skin regularly so that it does not crack.

For further advice, consult your doctor.

American Chronicle

Cellulitis and treatment: a qualitative study of experiencesBr

Cellulitis and treatment: a qualitative study of experiences

Br J Nurs. 2007 Mar 22-Apr 11

Carter K, Kilburn S, Featherstone P.Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust, Queen Alexandra Hospital, Portsmouth.

Although cellulitis is usually a relatively mild condition, it is potentially life threatening, often necessitating emergency treatment in either the acute or community care settings. The treatment of cellulitis with antibiotics is well established, with effectiveness generally measured against purely biochemical and clinical outcomes (Cox, 2002). Although important, these outcomes are centred purely on the disease process from the medical perspective and little is known about patients' experiences of cellulitis.

This qualitative study explores patients' view on the management of community-acquired cellulitis in the secondary healthcare setting. Data were collected through semi-structured groups and individual telephone interviews. Participants were selected through purposive sampling and the Framework Analysis Technique was used to analyse the data.

Three superordinate themes emerged: initial presentation/motivation for seeking help; confidence and satisfaction; anxiety and dissatisfaction. Severe pain was almost universally a cause of distress and flu-like symptoms delayed recognition. Health information and communication was generally poor.

Participants largely welcomed a move from inpatient to day-patient or outpatient care provided there was adequate information and support. To meet the diverse needs of cellulitis patients, services must be more flexible and tailored to the needs of the individual. Patients are often not told what they can do to prevent recurrence.

PMID: 17505397 [PubMed - in process]