Skin infection on finger

[vince207]

Two months ago my teenage daughter got small brown spots on her finger tip. Some of the spots were raised and looked as if they were filled with puss. She first noticed this after playing a soccer game on artificial turf. Her finger infection moved down to the middle of her finger over a three week period. Nothing stopped this infection. We tried neosporin and steroid cream from the doctor. The puss was tested and results were neither viral or bacterial. My daughter took a dose of antibiotics - this did not seem to help either. Finally, the infection seem to complete it's course, but left the skin on her finger looking different and her fingernail completely damaged (a new one is presently growing back) Now it seems this is happening again to another finger. Since yesterday, her skin is infected, sore and inflamed right around her nail and there are distinct small,dark, red-brown spots on her finger tip. Please advise. I hate to think of her going through this again. There is a coincidence...she played on artificial turf for the first time since the last time her finger was infected. What can I do?

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
From the symptoms it can be due to dactylitis, Osler’s nodes found in endocarditis or myxoid cyst or periungual fibroma. I suggest you to get a biopsy skin done to confirm the diagnosis. Pus testing by culture won’t give any conclusive results.

It is very difficult to precisely confirm a diagnosis without examination and investigations and the answer is based on the medical information provided. For exact diagnosis, you are requested to consult your doctor. I sincerely hope that helps. Take care and please do keep me posted on how you are doing.

[samjam8088]

Hi Vince,

I am NOT a doctor, but I have gone through a very similar experience. My left hand had a few raised brownish bumps on it, which, over the course of a few weeks, grew into a large brownish blotch. When I finally went to the doctor, they did a lot of tests -- for melanoma, viral infection, bacterial infection, etc. -- and they all came back negative. They were running out of ideas and it was getting worse, so they took a biopsy of the diseased skin. It was a very simple procedure. They sent the biopsy to a lab and the lab confirmed that it was a fungal infection (I know, ew). I was given a cream for it which cleared it up within a few weeks, and I have remained symptom-free ever since (for the past three years).

I can't tell you for certain that your daughter has a fungal infection, but I think you should consider the possibilty. My biggest advice to you would be, if your doctors don't know what it is, get a second opinion. Maybe if my doctor hadn't been quite so thorough, or had been a different doctor, she might never have figured out what was wrong.  

I wish you the best of luck, and I hope this has been helpful!

Samantha