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Conditions

Impetigo

Impetigo (Photo courtesy of CDC)

Impetigo is a highly contagious bacterial infection of the skin, of which there are two types: bullous impetigo (which causes large, painless, fluid-filled blisters), and the more common non-bullous impetigo (which accounts for over 70% of cases and causes sores that quickly rupture leaving a yellow-brown crust.) The condition is most common in children, normally occurring between the ages of two and four. However, it can also affect adults, especially if they are living in a confined environment such as an army barracks…or the Big Brother house! Channele Hayes, the Wannabee WAG from BB8, expressed concern in the diary room that the unhygienic conditions in the famous house could lead to an outbreak of impetigo. And even troubled singer Amy Winehouse has reportedly been diagnosed with the condition (maybe she picked it up in the confines of rehab?) A seven-day treatment of antibiotic creams will usually do the trick, but oral antibiotics can also be used if the creams are ineffective.

If you’re suffering from any of the conditions featured on this site and want to apply for an onscreen consultation with one of the EB team then you can find more details here >>

Remember that you should always check with a health professional if you have any concerns about your health.

If you are worried that your child may have impetigo, check our condition guide especially for parents on Embarrassing Bodies: Kids.

Watch our video and learn to detect those common and not so common rashes.

What the Men in White Coats Say

Comments and Questions

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Hi, im 21 and have been getting the non bulbous form of impetigo around my ankles, lower legs and feet on and off since i was about 5. No idea where i got it from but i used to run around barefoot alot so thats probabily how it happened,it normally flares up whenever i get stressed (exams, interviews etc...) and i've always treated it just by keeping very clean,taking piriton syrup, using germoline cream directly on the sores and covering them with plasters.It worked before (although i could never get rid of the scarring-bio oil helps abit but costs a bomb) but this time it seems to be spreading really fast.Help!im not sure what to do, its completely covering my legs and starting on my arms and belly now!





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I too had bn suffering impetigo for bout 4 years on and off. I went for a food allergy test and turns out i have a yeast allergy , since cutting out the bread i have been free from impetigo. Seemingly the yeasthas bn causing stresses in my stomach bringing impetigo on !





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im 34 years old and have found that i am getting what looks like red blisters under and around my jaw line and feels very ichy.





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I have had impetigo for about 7 years I got it from sleeping on the floor at a party!!! Everytime I get stressed BAM it comes back....OMG I hate this sooo much. I heard apple cider vinager works very well. I wish I could just cover it up w a really good makeup so I could work. I hate loosing money when I feel fine. I really think neosporan and a bandaid works wonders. I just wish that it will go away forever......cleaning the infected area w hot water seems to help. I hate u impetigo I wish u would die and never come back. Goodluck ppl





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Hi i have had what seems to look like impetigo on my nose for about three years now. The first time it came up it was swollen nearly three times the size to a big red blister which eventually burst and has now left a very sensitive blemish. It keeps coming back every couple of months and i dont know what to do as its spreading further along my nose and is leaving blemishes which i have all the time and i have to be very wary around as they very sensitive and easy irritated! It has no spread to my chin and left a blemish there also another sensitive area now is there anything i can do to stop it coming back all the time?





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I have been prescribed the fucidic acid cream but it just doesn't seem to clear the redness up underneath - been over 2 weeks I would say closer to a month now and I have just looked in the mirror to see it as bad as at the start although it has stopped weeping just little red patch about 3/4cm in size (not that big I know but I'm very self conscious). Why does this have to happen to us! I did read that fluroide does cause it so maybe toothpaste change may help (hard to find though as so many of them contain it)





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Hi im 23 and have had impetigo for as long as I can remember. I picked it up from a swimming pool in spain around 10 years ago id say and I usually get it 3-4 times a year. It has just come back with avengence and is by far the worst ive ever had it. I only ever get it around the top of my lip but it has covered my lip and nose both inside and out. I have tried flucoxacylin, erythorycin and fucidin but the virus keeps coming back. It can be quite depressing at times and I was wondering is there no anti virus for the problem and if so how do I go about getting it?? I have heard once you have it there is no cure, surely there must be something we can do to prevent it for good?? Any help would be much appriciated Brad - Blackpoool





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im 38 ive had what seems to look like impetigo for 10 years now it started when i changed a sink and got splashed across the face with nasty drain water in 2000, the first antibiotic i was prescribed worked for a few years then i cut my head while working under a vehicle and the cut diddent seem to heal properly stayed scabby, then it all started again and have tried at least 30 different medicines from fucidin to flucloxicillin protopic to eumovate ive even been prescribed daktarin and other antifungals and dermatitis creams all the time its slowly spreading and nothing has worked so far for the walking contaigen !! what might be interesting to you and others like us is trying bactroban ointment or cream which has been the most successful so far, it nearly got rid of it for me, but the commander of an army medical squadron of someones opinion i trust told me the only sure way to get rid of it is a culture grown and an antibiotic resistance test to find the the effective one, to start a suitable course of steroid tablets first followed by the antibiotic that does work,and its not 100% guaranteed, so after finding this out i asked nearly every doctor in my surgery if it would be possible to follow this course of action next and they all ironically refused in a vague around about way and just kept feeding me antibiotic pills some of which i have now got stomach acid reflux and alergies from be warned!. somehow ive lost the point of everything along the way, my girlfreind freinds and my life and shoulden't have had to, i think we should all form a support group and go private healthcare!!! until now i thought i was virtually on my own i havent met someone else with the same problem i dont know if its a blessing or a curse to find so many people with the same uncured bactereal problem wish we could all meet as it would make some things so much better and i would have some freinds again. and so on that violin note i put out my hopes and best wishes to everyone on this comments page because i know exactly how we all feel,... never give up.

please help me iv suffered with impetigo for 3 years now im 24 and have alot of red scaring on my face i barely leave the house anymore and am realy deppresed i just need to know the what the best type of treatment is for this so please try to help if u can i dont no what else to do





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I started getting it at 19 after I went tubing down a river in some really gross water and got a bad sunburn. now I am 36yrs old and only get it about every 2yrs. I seem to get it when I am sick and have a fever for an extended period of time or if I get a sunburn. I am just getting over a week long fever and sinus infection and it appeared this morning. so this will be my regime. Maybe it will help.... I will keep all of my hair off my face. stay in air condition. The cold air and no sweating seem to keep it from spreading or getting worse. I also don't wear any lotion or make up in that area. If I need to cover it I use a finger to put on loose powder. I always wash my hands especially my finger tips/under my nails with hot soapy water. once it starts oozing I will clean it with a little hydrogen peroxide and put neosporin on it. I also take some soap on my finger and wash very lightly that spot. (when I am washing the rest of my face I don't wash that area. I go around it. I have had it spread that way.) once it does not look infected anymore (usually 2days later) I will get aloe vera. The actual plant cut it open and put some of the goo from inside right on it. I do this for about 2 weeks or till the mark is all gone. (I put the plant in a zip loc so it won't dry out. It is natural and I believe it is why I have no scars from previous years. I hope this helps.

Go to a dermatologist. Ask for a culture to see what antibiotic your bacterial infection will respond to. The bacteria gets into dry skin and scrapes easily. It hates an acid environment. Thus, take a lukewarm (not hot because it irritates sensitive skin too much)daily bath of 5 inches of water mixed with two cups of vinegar. Don't rinse it off. Just towel dry so the acidic vinegar will stay on your skin. Then apply lotion to your skin - fragarance free - like Euccerin lotion - to keep your skin moist and less prone to cracks and scrapes. Stop using soap because it counteracts the vinegar's good effects. Instead use Cetaphil Gentle Skin clenser. To help the antibiotics work better, you can mix bleach and warm water, soak a washcloth in that and lay it on your skin for about thirty minutes to help kill the bacteria - just be aware that if you do it too much (more than every other day) - or with some people even once - it could cause the infection to spread if it dries out your skin too much and makes little places where the bacteria can get in.

hi i have impertigo on me face and i go given cream for but has it got to be completly cleared up so that i can go back to work because i still have it on me face it's the fisrt time i've ever had it and i don't know where i picked it up from.





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Hi, I've been diagnosed two weeks ago with impedigo by a GP. Was put on cefprozil 500mg and betaderm. Within 3 days the eruption expanded significantly. I returned to the GP and was prescribed a second class of antibiotics AmoxClav 875mg, She didn't seem convinced that the new prescription would work and called herself for a rush appointment with a determatologist. Since the spread has slowed down but continued over my stomach and legs and is now spreading to my arms and hands. I sanitize wash and sanitize dry everything and also take baths with one eighth of a cup of javel. I have some boulus impetigo and additionally patches or rashes that begin then spread and connect to make the red patches huge. The topical cream Viaderm KC or more known as Kenacomb cream has also helped to reduce the spread however after two weeks per the readings this should be starting to go away which is not the case. The red rash is so red that it looks like the red birth mark color and it covers about 6inches high and six inches wide plus all the additional patches. The epiderm is inflated to the point that at times I think the skin will tear. There is also a series of red lines that begin and then inflate with the liquid (golden in color). It almost seems that there is more than one type of bacteria on my skin. I fell while kyaking got scratched as I was pulled in the mild rapids. There was a considerable amount of algae in the water and believe that is where I got infected. The antibiotic Amox Clav is finishing tomorrow and could only get a rush appointment with the Dermatologist for Aug. 4th. I'm really getting concerned with this. The itching comes in bursts and that is when the expansion takes place. Would anyone have any suggestions or recommendations??





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Impetigo is a highly contagious bacterial infection of the skin. There are two types of impetigo: Read More »

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