An abscess is a collection of pus under the skin or inside your body. Abscesses usually form due to an infection or due to a foreign body being trapped in your body when your body fights an infection or tries to destroy a foreign body trapped inside it. White blood cells fill the infected tissue and the resulting fluid is called pus, which contains bacteria. Live and dead, live and dead white blood cells and the remains of cells and tissues that have been killed or injured by the infection or your body’s immune response.
Missed opportunity “very well health“Abscesses often form in or near the skin or in the mouth near the teeth. An abscess often looks like a bump of any size that is red and often swollen, and inside the bump is an area filled with pus.”
It is not wise to try to drain any abscess – however superficial. Doing so could lead to a fatal blood-borne infection and cause sepsis.
Symptoms of an abscess
Abscess symptoms vary with the location of the abscess and the underlying disease, disorder or condition.
Skin symptoms that may occur with an abscess.
An abscess may be accompanied by symptoms that affect the skin, including:
Drainage of fluid from the skin
Pain in or around a lump of skin.
Peeling or blistering of the skin
Redness, warmth, or swelling
Other symptoms that may occur with an abscess
An abscess may accompany symptoms related to other body systems. These symptoms include:
Swollen lymph nodes
Fatigue or malaise
Fever, chills, or sweating
-Headache
-Arthritis
Loss of appetite or rapid weight loss
Nausea, vomiting or diarrhea
Neurological symptoms (if the abscess presses on nerves or parts of the brain)
Pain, such as a toothache due to a tooth abscess or pain in the abdomen due to an abscess in the abdomen
-Sore throat
Dangerous symptoms that may indicate a life-threatening condition
In some cases, an abscess may be a symptom of a life-threatening condition that must be evaluated immediately in a hospital. Seek immediate medical attention if you or someone you live with has any of these life-threatening symptoms:
Difficulty speaking
Fainting, change in level of consciousness, or lethargy
Jaundice (yellowing of the skin and eyes)
-Epileptic fit.
Severe weakness or paralysis
Causes of abscess formation
An abscess occurs because your immune system responds to some kind of infection or foreign body. Bacterial infections are the most common cause of an abscess, especially an abscess of the skin or mouth.
Parasites can cause an abscess to form in your organs, and although rare, it can be a serious medical condition in which a foreign object, such as a bullet, can cause an abscess.
Common causes of an abscess
An abscess may be the result of a variety of common conditions, including:
A foreign object trapped inside of you, such as a fork or piece of metal that snaps into your skin; Also, it kept the foreign body fragments after the previous removal attempt
An affected diverticulum of the large intestine can cause a diverticular abscess
Infection at the site of previous surgery (contamination of the wound around surgery)
Skin infection may lead to an abscess
A dental infection may develop into a periodontal abscess
A wound or trauma to the skin, especially a puncture wound, may cause an abscess
Rare causes of an abscess:
An abscess can also be caused by a rare infection, including:
Infection with microorganisms such as amoeba can cause liver abscess formation
Infection with certain parasites can cause a variety of cysts in the body’s organs
An infection in your brain can cause a brain abscess
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