has anyone here ever had a carbuncle, and what color were the boils, red or white?

Answer 1

A carbuncle is a little bit of an older word for a "boil"

Which is basically like an acne cyst. (Larger Zit deep in the skin).

The cannot be "popped" like a zit, because they do not have an opening to the surface.

Basically some bacteria have gotten down into the skin a little bit and taken up residence. It is more like an infection than like acne.

You will probably want to go to the doctor depending on the size of it, and location. Do not attempt to "drain" it on your own. You could make the infection worse, and/or give yourself blood sepsis.

Basically your body makes a hard pocket around the infection trying to "contain" it so the immune system can fight it in one location. When the area is hot and red it means that extra blood is going to the area so your white blood cells can get in there and do their job.

I would see the doctor/ dermatologist and follow any advice they give you. They may have antibiotics, and possibly a numbing cream if it is very painful.

I am not a doctor, but my own opinion would be to avoid any "anti-inflammatory" medicine like aspirin, ibprophin, etc. They interfere with your histamine response which allows you immune response to attack it effectively.

But if your doctor says other wise please follow their advice - not mine.

You doctor may want to drain the boil, but usually has to wait until it is "ready". When the boil is still very hard to the touch and the skin feels thick on top it is not ready to clean.

When the boil feels more malleable, and the skin feels thin on top the doctor will clean the area with alcohol, and with gloves and sterile instruments use a scalpel to make a small incision, maybe 1/8 - 1/4 an inch depending on the size of the lesion.

The stuff that comes out will stink. That is normal. 1/2 of it is bacteria; the other 1/2 is dead cells. It may be like puss or is may be clumpy puss looking.

They will use sterile gauze to wipe away the mess, and maybe use a sterile saline solution to irrigate the open wound. Depending on the size of the wound they may pack dressing in it, or place dressing over it. I believe (I don't know for sure) that they want it to heal from the inside out.

Good Luck, Good Health.

Answer 2

Carbuncle Color