Impetigo Question

Wow, this brought back memories...my two oldest kids both got impetigo when they were about 3 and 4 years old. I remember undressing my son and seeing the sores on his leg and I thought he had leprosy...LOL!! Really, I panicked, but a trip to the doctor and using the cream they prescribed, it was no big deal, they healed up fine, no scars, and I think they only got it once after that initial time. Try not to worry!

my son is 18 months and he got impetigo three weeks ago he has been on antiobiotic ointment and antibiotic liquids for the last two weeks.the first week he was on the antibiotics it seemed like it was going away but on the 1st of september it has been spreading.I have tried everything to stop the spreading.I have been cleaning the infected areas every hour with antibacteral soap and putting the cream on it with bandaids and it still is getting worse.Its now has spots on his back and small spots on his legs and arms and I'm taking him back to the doctor tomorrow but I was wondering why if impetigo is so contagious and it is spreading on him why haven't I or anyone else in the house got impetigo yet? since he is often glued to me.some family members raised the question that he might not have impetigo.

Both my sons have gotten it quite a few times. The nice thing about it is that it doesn't leave scars and it heals pretty quickly. My youngest son is immune compromised and we were just talking to his immunologist about this on Thursday. He wants both boys to get their noses swabbed to see if they are staph carriers since impetigo is a staph infection.
A.

Don't worry. My daughter got it all over her back and butt, and it healed up really fast and not a single scar. She even scratched a couple spots until they bled, but kids heal easier because their skin is renewing itself faster than adults skin does. He'll be just fine:) Happy Mother's Day!

My 8 year old son got impetigo earlier this year, all over his face. It started as on little spot on his lip, and I thought he was getting a cold sore (I get them), but then it spread to his chin, nose, lips, cheeks. I think it was down his throat as well, but after being on antibiotics for 5 days (z pack) and I also used this prevention mouthwash to clean it 3 times a day, and put bacatracin on the sores, he is now fine. Thankfully the only scar he has is a tiny one on the bottom of his lip. So many people I talked to haven't heard of anyone getting it in years, so maybe its coming back, let's hope not.
About me: Married 10 years to the love of my life, 2 boys, ages 12 and 8.

Hi Doninique-
I'm a mom of twins and med. prof.
One of my girls got impetigo twice in the same location(s)- so know if you get another outbreak it's likely to occur similarly.
Use the cream and antibiotics as perscribed.
Soak the area with a moist wash cloth to eliminate the crusting effects but don't rub off the scab dry.
You should be fine without scars as long as you can prevent him from "picking"
B. J

My daughter has had impetigo since she was a baby always all over her face and she hasn't had any scars. As long as you follow what the doctor says with the creams i think your son will be fine. When it clears up if you do notice any types of scars i would try some neosporin because that works well to lighten scars.

My middle son would always get it during the summer. No matter what we did, he still got it until we moved out of the house that we were living in. After we moved, he had only one attack and that didn't last very long. He suffers from no scars. We finally had figured out that there was some thing in the house that was causing it and no matter how much I cleaned and shampooed the carpets, he still suffered. Keep track of where your son has visited and when these spots start. I know that this might be a little hard because he suffers from eczema but since the colors are different you'll be able to tell. If he only has an outbreak at certain places, then either avoid the place or make sure that you start treating open spots before he goes to visit or send what ever you're using with him so the treatment can start right away. I hope this and all of the others who have replied have helped.

L.

D., try not to worry; your son's skin will eventually be fine. I remember having impetigo as a kid. It looked SO gross, but after the cream did it's job my skin was back to normal. Just make sure that he doesn't scratch or pick at the scabs - that would cause scarring. Good Luck!

Hi D.,

Hope your Mother's Day was enjoyable.

None of my children has had impetigo but I had it when I was young! I remember getting it across my entire chin. my mom put a giant bandage over it. I was glad it cleared up quickly and I never had any scarring from it.

Consider having aloe at your home for any kind of anti-scarring medicine. it even helps sunburn heal and it's all natural and nontoxic. Not sticky or painful in any way either.

Best wishes,
K. C

My daughter had Impetigo and she has no scars and is fine after the antibiotics kicked in. It's basically a bacterial infection and I did read a tie in to the Eczema, but can't remember what the link was. Any ways, if he's scratching, you can wrap his arms in gauze because from what I understand from those who've had Impetigo and remember what it was like that it itches like crazy, but no one I know of who's had Impetigo has mentioned scarring. Good luck!

Angie

PS - I know it looks horrible, and you may feel bad about it. I cried myself, but it will be okay. Happy Mother's Day!

Two of my three had it, it went away just fine. Don't worry. But dont let him scrach it. J.

There should be no scars, but the eczema and/or impetigo may return multiple times if not treated properly (it is very common for impetigo to follow an eczema outbreak). The hydrocortizone creme is helping in the short term, but he may have outbreaks repeatedly if you don't find the reason he got it. If he had never had an outbreak before being at your mother's house, there is something there that is making him sick.

I would ask your mom for a list of things he did and where he did them... things he ate (eczema is often an allergy to food) and new things he may have touched (farm animals, etc...).

Getting well this time without scars from this event won't prevent it from re-occurring. I encourage you to get to the bottom of it.

My brother had impetigo in highschool. He was on the wrestling team and got it all over his head, face, and body. It looks nasty too. It cleared up and never left any scars.

To help with anything scarring I recommend being really careful and use sunscreen really cautiously and use like neosporin or baccitracin for a year or so after it clears up if it's leaving any marks.

My son had impetigo when he was 3. It was misdiagnosed as measles and so was untreated for several days whilst we waited for blood tests. By this time it was head to toe and angry. Once he started on antibiotics it cleared quickly and no scarring. For a few months after, if he got a cold , he would get a few spots on his face but the doctor gave us cream and soon he stopped getting it. Just something to watch.

Hope he gets well soon and that you and your daughter don't get it but don't worry (hard i know cos it looks awful. that was the only time my husband took time off work when one of our kids was sick even though I was home. It just looked so bad)

Avacado oil, shea butter, wheat germ oil, and jajoba oil are all supposed to be excellent for scarring prevention and or healing. Check online if you cannot find a local massage supply store or cosmetology store. Your locoal health food store may also have these ingredients. Vitamin E oil is also supposed to be really good for scarring, but it's sticky, so best if used with some other carrier oil such those listed above. Aloe vera gel (100% if possible) is also good. Sorry I don't know much about impetigo...

My son just had a small spot on his face once, near his lips, and it didn't leave scars. I would think that if you can keep him from scratching or picking at it it will be fine and won't scar. You could call the doctor back for recommendations.

That sounds like what my daughter had. Initially the doctor said it was Scarlet Fever but later we found out it was a brown recluse spider bite. Here is a picture of what her legs looked like (is this what your sons arms looked like?)... Here are 5 pictures of her legs on in various stages of healing... http://wdmmommy.blogspot.com/search?q=scaret+fever You can barely see the dark circles anymore so hopefully your sons will go away too :)