What to do - Folliculitis

Hello All, and thanks for taking time to view my question!

I am 30 years old, and a male. I have had eczema my whole life. When I was a child I had it pretty bad, but now I just get it on my elbows and my sides below my ribcage, and only in the winter.

My questions is this: I have been for about 4 years now getting what I thought were ingrown hairs on the back of my legs. Well as I read up I come to realize that since it is persistent that it is likely folliculitus (folliculitis). I have tried everything to get rid of this once and for all.. I have use Noxzema, Clean and Clear (and all sorts of other cleaners with Triclosan in them); I have tried using Neosporin and other anti-biotic ointments, I have tried alcohol hand sanitizer, and all sorts of things. While they may reduce the amount of boils at any given time, without constant use of anti-biotic cleaners and/or ointments these boils on the back of my legs keep coming back, and if I stop use of these products all together the boils get huge, painful and end up bleeding once they burst. At any one given time I could have 4 –5 boils on the back of each leg; they have also appeared on my buttocks, but never higher than my waist line. I have several of what appear to be scars left by previous boils.. In any case, try going to a swimming pool or a lake to swim with  3 boils the size of quarters on the back of your leg.. Not going to happen.. What can I do and could this be a sign of a bigger problem??

[jagesh50]

Best to get a culture and sensitivity test to identify the bacteria and the antibiotic to be used.

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
Boils are caused by infection of the hair follicle by staph aureus. . Hair follicles that are blocked by greasy creams, petroleum jelly, or similar products are more vulnerable to infection. Bacterial skin infections can be spread by shared cosmetics or washcloths, close human contact, or by contact with pus from a boil or carbuncle.
Boil on buttocks is usually due to plugged sweat glands that become infected or by an ingrown hair.
Apply warm compresses on the boil and keep the area clean.Drainage of the boil is done only when it becomes soft and forms a head.Take some over the counter pain reliever and consult a doctor for examination and antibiotics prescription. Recurrent boils are found in diabetes, HIV infection, or other immune system disorders.So pls get your blood sugar evaluated.Also get a culture sensitivity of the discharge done to find out the specific antibiotic.
Hope it helps.Take care and pls do keep me posted on how you are doing or if you have any additional queries. Kind regards.