Are skin abscesses contagious meaning can they spread to other parts of the body?

Question

I had surgery on my stomach on memorial day for a huge abscess they had to cut deep into my stomach. I need to know that if it will spread and come back on other part of body at later time.

Answer 1

Abscesses can spread to nearby areas as they grow in size, but if the doctors killed all of the bacteria in the abscess, then there is nothing left to spread. A person could infect another part of their body with the bacteria in an abscess if they cut the skin after touching fluids oozing out of the abscess, or if they have reduced immunity, but this is not something that is not likely to occur with most people. Anyhow, another abscess would have alreadly showed up by now if you had spread the bacteria to another area.

In some people, the bacteria that caused the abscess are always present, but only cause abscess to form occasionally and the reason is unknown.