Fifty Plus (50+) - Infected hair Follicle - WARNING PICTURES GRAPHIC

When I left US last thursday (22nd) I noticed a sore on my upper thigh. I believe & the Dr confirmed, it
was an infected hair follicle inside my leg. By the time I got to see Dr (Monday) it was
way out of control. (I was amazed as to how fast this developed) I was admitted so i could get antibiotics via IV but Wednesday they decided surgery was necessary to avoid tissue damage and
further progression (pus was internal & already started to form a solid
mass), Today I'm doing well but got a hole in my leg about a half inch in
Dia and about an inch deep. It will be left open open to drain & heal from
inside out. I left Hosipital this afternoon (saturday 31st) and get to change bandage once a day and clean it out. I don't have long term tissue damage.
I check back with drs latter next week. I was in good care.
pic 1 just before surgery, other pictures after

your decision for immediate medical intervention was wise.
a small surgical procedure now is better than an amputation later.

if people ask about the scar, fabricate a cool story about a gunshot wound or something.
good luck for a speedy and full recovery!

Did they identify the organism? Looks like a bad critter got ahold of you.

Yikes. It will itch like hell during the healing process. Glad to hear you took immediate medical attention. If left unattended awhile longer, you could have develop blood poisoning.

That almost happened to me once. It's actually called "oldcrustybikeitis". Go buy a new bike and it will go away. :D

Do you know if this was some of the mrsa? I had a small spot like yours but mine was on the bottom of my foot. Mine was mrsa and it spread to my bladder and after 6 days in the hospital and IV's and super antibiotics I was lucky enough to live. Another 6 months and I was back to my normal.

Heal quickly and keep riding.

I saw on TV that some firm in England has an antibiotic that is killing mrsa and after 45 treatments the mrsa has not been able to develop immunity to the antibiotic. This is good news.

:eek: WOW!

Glad to hear you are ok.

I like the gunshoot wound idea.

looks more like a boil

Ouch! That looks painful. Best wishes for a speedy recovery. Bet you're glad it wasn't closer to the chamois.

OMG! :eek::eek: I've never heard of anything like this before. How scary! What's mrsa?

OMG! :eek::eek: I've never heard of anything like this before. How scary! What's mrsa?


Staph skin infections, including MRSA, generally start as small red bumps that resemble pimples, boils or spider bites. These can quickly turn into deep, painful abscesses that require surgical draining. Sometimes the bacteria remain confined to the skin. But they can also penetrate into the body, causing potentially life-threatening infections in bones, joints, surgical wounds, the bloodstream, heart valves and lungs.
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/mrsa/DS00735/DSECTION=2

OMG is right; glad you caught it in time...feel better

Wow, that is a nasty wound.:eek: Good you got the quick attention you needed!

I was eating when I read this...I'm not anymore.

I am totally amazed and shocked. I get these boils/pimples often. Perhaps 4-5 times/year. I scratch them open and apply lots of Antibacterial cream and they go away. I had one of these on a 4 week tour. No chance to see a doctor. I did what I said above and it went away again. That was 2 weeks ago.

Now I am starting to worry, after the fact.:(:(:eek:

Is this the same as what is referredt to as an ingrown hair? Or is this something different? I have had ingrown hairs which eventually get infected, ***** etc. then you can pop them or pull them out. Your pictures indicate this one was totally covered and inflamed. Ouch, glad you are healing though.

I was eating when I read this...I'm not anymore.

I wish something like that would stop me from eating. I could eat and watch them open it up.:twitchy:

Man I hope you get better quick. I burned 30% of my body about 5 years ago and got staff while I was in Vandy Burn Center. Bad infections aint no fun. Get well soon.

A cautionary tale, to be sure. Thanks for the post, and get well soon!

Yikes! I was just complaining to my wife that I have developed a permanent case of "helmet hair," which is unbecoming. I'm more than lucky!

Get well soon.

Wow! Glad to hear that you are okay now. Wow!

... Brad

Looks worse than an injury from falling off your bike!

Think about the bright side: Maybe it will serve as an excuse to get out of doing some work.

[QUOTE=jim p;6792259]Do you know if this was some of the mrsa? I had a small spot like yours but mine was on the bottom of my foot. Mine was mrsa and it spread to my bladder and after 6 days in the hospital and IV's and super antibiotics I was lucky enough to live. Another 6 months and I was back to my normal.
Staph skin infections, including MRSA, generally start as small red bumps that resemble pimples, boils or spider bites. These can quickly turn into deep, painful abscesses that require surgical draining. Sometimes the bacteria remain confined to the skin. But they can also penetrate into the body, causing potentially life-threatening infections in bones, joints, surgical wounds, the bloodstream, heart valves and lungs.

QUOTE]
I was lucky, the Dr here is a top specialist in the philippines on infections. She kept asking me if I was in or visited a US health care facility (while in US). I kept repeating no. Seems the US has some terrible stuff. I was released yesterday and have to dress the wound every day. It is half closed as of this a.m.

I was STUNNED to go from a red pimple sore after a ride last tuesday to Monday hospital. They were worried it would spread to bone, etc.

Thanks for all the kind posts. I'll sure be watching the saddle pimples closer now &keep on riding.

Ouch, that's painful to look at! Glad you have it under control now.