Watch those feet!
 

Old KHatfull is hobbled!

(don't worry, no icky content below...and there is a reason I'm relaying this)

It seems I've contracted a case of cellulitis, an infection of the skin and/or underlying tissues, in my right foot. I had no idea what it was but this seems to be a semi-common thing, here's the apparent series of events:

Thursday afternoon: I take the daughter to the barn where we stable her horse. Unbeknownst to me I have a tad of athlete's foot between 4th and pinky toe. Enough of a break in the skin to allow whatever bug this is get in...being in sandals and at the barn probably didn't help.

Thursday night: 4th toe really hurts, so much so I begin wondering if I smacked it and didn't remember doing it.

Friday: Pain gets worse and worse, can barely walk by the end of the day.

Friday night: So bad I couldn't sleep at all.

Saturday afternoon: Go to urgent care, get diagnosed, get antibiotics, instructions to go to the ER if it gets worse or I develop a fever.

Sunday: No better at all.

Sunday night: Pain and swelling get worse.

Monday morning: Go to the ER, get IV antibiotics and much stronger oral meds. Get a line drawn on my foot indicating the extent of the infection:

http://home.comcast.net/~khatfull/images/foot.jpg

(hard to see in the pic)

Hopefully it retreats now with the stronger meds and I can get up walking again by Wednesday.

Now, why do I relay this sordid tale? While I was talking to the doc he said that this was common in the summer months...sweatier feet, etc., etc. I mentioned in passing that I was a cyclist and he said that cyclists seem to develop this a little more frequently than most! I've even spoken to another forum member who had the same thing as well!

So keep 'em clean and dry... :)

Thanks for the warning. If I had your early smptoms, I would have probably treated it as gout, since I have it...

Ow! Hope you heal up fast.

If I wasn't 100% sure that I hadn't kicked anything I might not have jumped on it so fast either. Felt exactly like that at the start and honestly, I'm clumsy so I nearly talked myself out of going Saturday. They did x-ray it today to be sure too...nothing at all.

Actually in the last hour it seems to be getting a tad better so hopefully the IV antibiotics are helping. Thanks!

Dude I think you may have given the correct name to what I experienced about 3 weeks ago.....the pic of your foot looks exactly like what I had.

Starting at my right ankle I had an itch that felt similar to a bug bite, except there was no sign of a bite. Next day it looked more like a spider bite than a bug bite but still no sign of the bite. Third day I was like you were on Saturday and I went to the doctor the next morning when it was no better.

Same treatment as you plus they treated me to bloodwork to rule out Lyme's. After 2 or so days of Antibiotic it started to improve...mind you during those two days it was just as bad as it was on day 3 and 4, but it takes some time for those pills to build up to a level in your system that they actually start to work (that's where you've got the IV advantage!).....doc told me to take the antibiotics for 7 days which I did....I was pretty much back to normal by day 7 with just a little residual itchiness.

My doc never actually told me what it was....they just treated it some sort of infection (insect caused or otherwise) and gave me antibiotic. Lyme's test came back negative.

It definitely took 2 weeks start to finish to be back at 100%. I was off the bike for nearly a full two weeks because it was excruciating to bend my ankle when it was really inflamed.

Ibuprofen helped keep the swelling down for me.
Not fun though....Not something I'd like to repeat anytime soon and now everytime I've got an itch on my ankle In the back of my head I'm like "Oh man, not this again"

As Little Darwin suggested, I too was worried at first that I had Gout.

I'm thinking of starting a new thread;
"IF YOU COULD HAVE ANY MEMBER'S INFECTION" ;)

I failed to mention I got the bloodwork too...white count was normal but some protein marker was off the charts, hence infection according to the doc.

Yeah, my pic isn't good but if you Google Image "cellulitis" (beware...) you'll see some milder cases. When I saw some of the pics, yep, no doubt.

This is pretty much what mine looked like Saturday (maybe not quite that swollen): http://www.skinsight.com/images/dx/w...s_6634_med.jpg

Again, not trying to gross anyone out here but when I mentioned being a cyclist and the docs reaction I thought it might be helpful...

It's good that you are receiving care for the condition as it sounds like it could be MRSA, a staph type bacterial infection that is very resistant to most antibiotics. Symptoms as you had described, usually die down a bit or don't improve then hit with a vengeance and they then usually have to bring in the antibiotic "big guns" out to get ahead of it. It can get dangerous if not caught asap. The delimma is that the doctors do not want to use such strong antibiotics as they are running out of types that can still beat down these new, very resistant strains. Hope you get well soon.

Chombi

Ouch! Hope the worse is over and you're healing fast. Looks painful. :(
Thanks for the warning. One can't be too careful these days, especially when it's warm outside.

Lyme disease back East, now it's Valley Fever, and bunch of new parasites and insects indigenous to the Southwest. :-P

Hope you get better soon Khatful. Foot problems are no good.

Again, not to be gross, but you need to be careful. I thought I had a spider bite from working in the yard, but it kept swelling and getting more painful. Long story short, I had to get surgery to cut out a quarter sized infection on my chest and another one above my knee. So, ANYTIME I get an itch or swelling, I check in with my doctor. Khatfull's warning is very timely, as was his quick reaction.

Hope you heal well and soon, Keith.

Hope you get better. Cellulitis is nothing to ignore. I do research/quality improvement at a couple hospitals and foot infections can lead to some pretty serious stuff. I won't scare you with the details, but love your feet and you will live a happy life.

Yikes, Keith! Get better soon!

Hope you get better quick! Having arthritis in my foot, I can attest to how hard it is to put up with foot issues! (made me a better cyclist because it hurt to bad to walk the bike :D )

Just some advice in case your Doc did not have the time to tell you...

1) Stay on the antibiotics till you are completely healed (this is kind of new and has developed with the advent of very hard to control MRSA)
2) Don't forget to treat the fungal infection (your antibiotics are covering most likely the bacterial infection and in order to really get rid of the fungal athletes foot you need a systemic anti-fungal medication that your Doc can prescribe after the cellulites is over)
3) Do not manipulate the wound (this is new too; in the old days it was scrub it out lance it dig around and drain it but with MRSA around you have to be more careful - Let your Doc do the digging if it gets to that)
4) Now the old school:
a. Vit C 1000mg twice a day till healing starts then 500mg twice a day till healed, acid Ph
b. Butter Milk, dirty cheese or some kind of other live lacto bacilli twice a day
c. 100% Cotton big bulky loose bandage if you need a bandage, creates a magic field of healing
d. Zantac 150mg at least once a day; reduces general inflammation via blockage of histamine
e. Eat well nutritious meals and think good thoughts
f. Again - IT IS NOT OVER TILL IT IS COMPLETELY HEALED!!!

I have a pretty good record for treating cellulites in the Central Texas area but I treat them all aggressively even if they do not have underlying medical conditions like age, diabetes or PVD - GOOD LUCK

http://images.usatoday.com/money/adv...13-lamisil.jpghttp://images.usatoday.com/_common/_images/clear.gifhttp://images.usatoday.com/_common/_images/clear.gif


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http://i.ebayimg.com/t/Rare-Lamisil-...Lqn9g~~0_3.JPG

I had arthritis in my big toe joint.... got so bad the joint was bone on bone and totally destroyed. I didn't know what it was, just knew I had searing pain after prolonged activity (playing baseball, hiking, etc...) I finally got tired of living with the pain, and went to a specialist to see what it was. He did the x-rays, and came back with the arthritis diagnosis. Then he said, "I can fix it". :saweeet:

1-1/2 hours under the knife, a break here, a few pins there, and some bone shaving and reshaping. 10 days off my feet, then a little rehab.

That was in 2000, and no issues since. It changed my life because I was able to become fully active again and not have to worry about paying for a day of outdoor activity with a couple of days of agonizing pain.

I'd name my son after that doctor, if I had one. :)

Just a cortizone shot took care of mine mostly, but man it was the worst pain I ever felt! And that is with nine different fingers having been dislocated at different times, cracked ribs, bruised kidneys and getting kicked in the nuts too (martial arts as a youngster) and one separated shoulder. I never would have thought an arthritic joint would hurt that bad!

Cellulitis, is very serious. You need to follow the doctors orders. My Mom had it and almost ended up staying in the hospital. It can get worse very fast. I pray for your speedy recovery, stay off that foot and take your antibiotics. If it gets worse get to the ER as fast as you can. My ex is a Nurse and told me how bad it can get. Hop you all the best. Sorry if it scaring you, but this is nothing to ignore..

Mike

Wow, that is really great. Seems like most times people go under the knife for joint issues, it works for a while, but then they are back on the operating table again a few years later or it causes other problems. But this sounds like a real unqualified success.

Me, neither. It was amazing how painful that toe joint was. It was like someone stabbing it with a red-hot knife. For such a small part, it sure was debilitating....

FWIW, the guy that did it was a sports/athlete foot specialist, and he had pretty much perfected the procedure before I came along. Most doctors will tell you to just live with it...... this guy fixed it, and he waiting room reflected his success at making foot issues disappear. The icing on the cake was that his office and home hospital just happened to be 5-10 minutes away from me. :)

Good luck Keith, and do as the doctor and others have advised. Get well quickly!

Get better soon!

Keep taking the antibiotics for the full course- don't stop taking them when you feel "better."

Like in any profession, most are marginally competent and doing as little as possible to get by & make the day's quota, a few stink beyond words, and there is the occasional genius practitioner, whether bike mechanics, doctors, etc. Man, for something as irreversible as joint surgery, you really lucked out finding the right guy. I almost never hear stories like this from joint surgery.

And Kevin, yeah, I'm sure you know now, cellulitis is serious, good luck w/that.