Our skin is subject to many types of infections, from bacteria and viruses to fungus and yeast, as well as parasites. Dr. Kaminester is an expert at distinguishing among these many causes of skin infections, taking the appropriate skin culture or biopsy, and then treating it accordingly. Sometimes he works together with an infectious disease doctor for more severe infections.
Bacterial infection of the skin can be superficial and called impetigo or deeper in the skin when called cellulitis. Cellulitis occurs when a break in the skin allows bacteria that normally live on the surface to enter the body, causing inflammation, redness, pain, warmth, fever and/or chills, fatigue and muscle aches. The break itself may arise from an animal or insect bite or sting, after some types of surgery, with the use of certain drugs or from skin wounds due to injury, diabetic or ischemic ulcers, or if the patient has peripheral vascular disease. Even a simple scratch, if left untreated, can lead to such infections. Left untreated, bacterial infection can lead to tissue death (gangrene), sepsis, generalized infection, shock, meningitis (if cellulitis is on the face) and lymphangitis (inflammation of the lymph vessels). Treatment may require hospitalization, oral antibiotics and analgesics to control the pain
Fungal infections of the skin are caused by microscopic organisms that live on the hair, nails (onychomycosis), mouth (angular cheilitis/oral thrush) and outer skin layers. They are quite common. Other fungal infections include tinea pedis (of the feet), tinea corporis (on the body) and tinea crurus (in the groin). Tinea versiclor is a related form of fungus infection of the skin, chronically recurrent, most often on the trunk, caused by Malassezia furfur and causes white scaly spots (on darker skinned persons) and tannish red scaly spots on lighter skinned persons. Deeper fungal infection into the hair follicles of the legs usually in women who shave their legs and often have pet cats or kittens is called Majocchi’s granuloma.
Yeast infections, cutaneous candidiasis, for example, which occurs in the warm, moist crevices of the body, is the usual cause of diaper rash and vaginal yeast infections. These fungal and yeast infections are most likely to occur in people with diabetes, who are obese or who take antibiotics or oral contraceptives. They are treatable but often recur. Treatments include topical and systemic antifungal medications
Early diagnosis and treatment is often crucial to a successful outcome with such infections.
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