Boils - Its cause, prevention and cure

Boils are to complexion problems what the popular comic book character Hulk Hogan is to professional wrestling; bigger, meaner and higher-profile than the rest. While pimples are more of a surface problem, boils start as an infection inside the hair follicle, meaning they have much deeper roots. And a boil is a lot bigger than the pimple: about a centimeter or larger. They can come on very rapidly, in two or three days and enlarge quickly. Suddenly the patient feels it because a boil can be very, very painful.

The typical boil hangs around for several weeks, fading away only after the body's white blood cells conquer the inflammation inside the follicle. A sign of your white blood cells' battle with the inflammation is the yellowish pus you will often see at the head of the boil.

Most boils are caused by a bacteria called staphylococcus aureus. It is found on most people's skin, but for unexplained reasons, the bacteria only causes boils to form in some cases. Sometimes, medical problems like diabetes or immune deficiencies make a person more susceptible to the painful skin eruptions. Skin disorders like atopic dermatitis and eczema are also a big risk.

Prevention of Boils
Even if you are prone to boils, there are things you can do to keep them away.

• Stay in touch with the soap : Good hygiene makes a difference. Use an antibacterial soap. If you can decrease the number of bacteria on your skin in the first place, you'll have less chance of getting a boil. It is also important to bathe shortly after exercise, when the number of bacteria on your skin are increased.
• Loosen up : Tight fitting clothing that doesn't let the skin breathe could be a boilmaker . With men, that's one of the most common causes.
• No close shaves : If you cut facial hair too close to your face, the hair will retract under the skin surface and get trapped, which sets up the initial inflammation that could lead to a boil.
• Wash your hands : Oils that contact the body will irritate the hair follicles and cause a boil or acne. Try to minimize contact and protect yourself with some type of coat or jacket. And wash your hands often.
  

Cure for Boils

Once you are sure you have a boil, it is left to the doctor to decide whether you will face the knife or not. If the boil is soft and there is some collection of pus, it is ready to be lanced. But if it is an early boil, doctors tend to treat it with heat and antibiotics. Any acute painful swelling of the skin that doesn't resolve in a couple of days should be evaluated by a physician.

Here are a few treatment tips.

• Compress it : You can speed up the healing process by applying hot, wet compresses to the boil every two hours to bring it to a head and hasten drainage. The heat can also lessen pain from the pressure inside the follicle.
• Don't pick on yourself : Keep your hands off the boil. If you try to squeeze the boil yourself, it's possible the membrane in the pus sac could break down and multiply your problem. The lining of the boil bursts and sets up another boil, which can come out in clusters called a carbuncle. This in turn could send bacteria into the bloodstream, and in rare instances could cause infection of the heart, brain or bones.
• Attack with antibiotics : If your boil seems to have taken up permanent residence, or if you have a recurring problem with painful bumps, see a doctor who may prescribe antibiotics.
  People with severe boils could be put on a treatment of systemic antibiotics. Chronic carriers may be treated with a 12-week course of antibiotics to eradicate the staph from the nose.