What are boils? What is the medical term for a boil? What are the stages of boils? What are the final stages of a boil?
Boils, medically called as abscess or furuncles, are a common form of skin infections with the most common bacteria responsible for this is Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus). Believe it or not, but even on normal skin almost 1,000 different species of bacteria reside and 1 million bacteria reside on every square centimeter of our skin 1. S. aureus is part of this normal skin residing bacteria. Our skin’s protective barrier prevents these bacteria from going deeper into our skin preventing infections.
In boils, the skin barrier is breached and some of these bacteria gain access to deeper skin parts like the hair follicle and the sweat glands, infecting them, causing boils to form. Therefore boils can happen anywhere where there are hair follicles and sweat glands - like face, neck, armpits, shoulders, genital areas and buttocks.
The bacteria can enter into the hair follicles or sweat glands through small cuts or nicks on the skin, through friction, poor skin hygiene, or if the patient has weakened immune system or metabolic conditions like diabetes. Other skin conditions like acne, can increase the risk of boil formation. Poor nutrition can also increase the risk of boils.
The stages of boil formation are important as it helps the doctor to decide the treatment:
- Early Stage: starts as a small, tender, pinkish-red bump on the skin. The surrounding skin appears swollen and inflamed.
- Growth stage: As the boil grows in size it becomes more painful and will feel like water filled balloon with skin becoming more swollen.
- Pus formation: As the body tries to protect itself from this bacterial attack, pus formation takes place, which is a mixture of dead bacteria and our own body defense cells.
- Drainage stage: as the pus volume increase the superficial skin layer opens and the pus is released.
- Healing stage (final stage): After the boil has drained, it becomes easier for our body to fight off the bacteria to allow the healing and repair process to take place. Application of antibiotic creams at this stage helps, as it helps our body to fight the bacteria.
Is it necessary to remove pus from boil? Can boil heal without pus coming out?
No, it is not necessary that pus must drain to heal. Boils heal through 2 main mechanisms:
- Pus drainage, which is the most common method
- Absorption: where the body will absorb the dead tissue. This can happen for smaller boils
Do boils heal naturally? How long do boils last?
In most cases boils can heal naturally. Your doctor might prescribe some antibiotics to help in faster healing. So most of the boils can be healed without any procedure. Boils do not last more than a week. If the boil has been there for 2 weeks, then you must consult a doctor.
What happens if a boil is not treated?
In most cases there is no problem if it is not treated. In healthy individuals, the body's own defense mechanism will be sufficient. You might need help of our doctor if the boil is:
- Large: more than 2 inches in size
- Recurrent: keeps coming back in the same or other areas
- Fever: and red streaks are also accompanying symptoms
- Not healing: for more than a week
- Severe discomfort: especially when it occurs in buttock areas. This is the most common reason for customers to come to Smart Surgeons.
What are the common types of boils that need treatment? When
Most common types of boils that need treatment and are seen at Smart Surgeons are:
- Pilonidal cyst: These are boils that are formed in the crease between the buttocks. These are most commonly seen in men, as they tend to have hair in this part. There are many patients that come with this issue for treatment. Sometimes in recurrent cases, the patient may need treatment to treat the underlying cyst using another surgical procedure, as it starts interfering with their regular life activities.
- Furuncles: These are regular boils, just larger or interconnected boils. Generally these would be 2 inches in size or larger. Sometimes furuncles are multiple boils that merge and interconnect. These kind of large boils typically indicate underlying health conditions like diabetes, eczema or a chronic infection.
- Cystic Acne: Sometimes the boils formed in patients with cystic acne will need surgical drainage or antibiotic support as the boil nodules become large, painful and embarrassing
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