Hand infected (Warning, gross photos)

[PIPpityDoodah]

I do have another thread on this but I've been on antibiotics since Thursday and it's just getting worse.

It's still hot and new puss filled blisters are appearing.

Shouldn't the antibiotics have kicked in by now?

It's so sore and embarrassing

I've used the epaderm last night and it did sting a tiny bit but it's much improved and didn't sting at all this morning.

It's less dry and red/angry

@PIPpityDoodah I had very similar on my feet, for well over a year, it was awful living with it and GP was useless really, they thought it was pompholyx, and to be fair the symptoms and appearance did match and I tried quite a few creams and ointments but nothing worked. I paid privately to see a dermatologist, who said let's go back to basics and treat for a fungal infection. I had serious doubts as it wasn't like any of the usual symptoms but went with it. He prescribed terbinafine tablets and I was amazed after about a week I could feel relief from it. My initial prescription was for 3 months, and when I stopped it started to come back a bit so I did an extra few weeks but have been free of it ever since. This was 2 or 3 years ago and I still thank my lucky starts I dont have to endure it any more. I know it sounds silly but worth exploring? I know its your hand and not your feet, and I dont know if you can even get fungal infections on your hands, but if youre as desperate as I was its worth a shot. My consultation cost me £100 ish privately and my prescriptions were about £20 I think. The tablets are strong and GPs dont like prescribing them due to some possible side effects but it was worth it for me and I didnt experience any side effects. I hope you get sorted.

I found epaderm worked for me when I used to have bad eczema flare ups so that's good..you do have to make sure you apply it morning and night to start noticing a difference and whenever you wash your hands.
I never really got on with dermol 500, I found since switching back to a thicker emollient my skin has been a lot better.
I use the cream instead of a soap in the shower now as well, It's made a massive difference.
It's just a matter of trial and error until you find what works for you.

Well the Dr prescribed me clobaderm ointment rather than cream and the small bottle of epaderm cream was working well so I ordered the ointment and the combination is helping so lot.

My wrist is very itchy today so I'm hoping it'd not spreading downwards.

So the little circle has come back in the same bloody place again.

And it feels hot to the touch. It's seems to be the same area that it first started.

I feel so fed up.

I've been looking at private dermatology appointments but it's £250 just for an initial consult :(

After the 6th Dec it cleared up completely and about a week ago I thought it may be turning a corner as my hand looked normal but here he is again!!

Did you stop the ointment or reduce how often you were moisturising after it got better?

That’s what I was going to ask too.

i lowered the ointment regularity. it was seemingly much more settled and thought it was better and it was horrible to use!

but the itching has come back with a vengeance 😩
I feel stupid now!
I started using it again last night but I am just going to keep going until I cover exactly what I was told no matter what I think it’s looking/feeling like, no matter how uncomfortable treatment is.

im sorry @PIPpityDoodah its horrible isn’t it. I hope you find a treatment that works. Mine is just as horrible to deal with and actually quite embarrassing (as it’s in shall we say an intimate area) but at least when I’m in the world no one can see it and don’t have the issues you have because of having to use your hands all the time!

No.
I'm putting it on consistently even if there's nothing there, like the Dr said.

That sounds awful :( It's so frustrating

I just can't believe how long it's been going on for.

I hope you get some relief soon.

I think both you and I just need to ignore the symptom's being there or not as a indicator of it is better or not and just decide that we need to be diligent about long term treatment with the hope that if we just keep going. the blanket treatment and length of it will kick it in to touch.

I’ll be thinking about you @PIPpityDoodah during our mutual battle!

It's got so much worse today. It's sore!

My hands look exactly like this after wearing nitrile gloves, which I have to wear for work. It is a vicious cycle of steroid cream, which does help, but then hands back to being a mess again as soon as I wear the gloves.

DH is a chemist and there are people who have left as they get this permanent contact dermatitis where they flare up every time they are exposed to the same chemical. It doesn’t ever go away.

I can't figure out what is triggering it though :(

I had something similar to this when I lived abroad. I think it was cheap washing up liquid, even though I used gloves, and cheap cleaning products (I was poor). Mine was red with tiny bumps but no puss, itchy and sore. It was on the back of my hand near my thumb. The right hand was far worse but the left had a tiny circle of it. I tried lots of creams from the pharmacy (couldn't afford a doctor) but it eventually went after using Combiderm cream and moving to another country. Now I still always wear washing up gloves, for everything except getting clothes out if the washing machine and I only use Fairy aloe Vera washing up liquid. I am also not so stressed as I'm no longer struggling so much financially.

Anti bacterial hand soap and liquid soaps are a major trigger for me, for any dry hand issues. I use bar soaps like Dove. I also use soap to wash with, never shower gel.

they didn’t know either which is why is ended at least one persons career as they couldn’t pin point it. Just being on site set it off. Fine when they were away.
It might be worth literally removing everything from use and only start using a couple of things. It’s impossible though as there are scents/chemicals in everything.

Also. Upon moving my brand of rubber gloves changed, which I think helped.

Feeling throughly pissed off.

Decided to go hard and :

-Apply a large amount of steroid every night and wear a cottom glove

• Keep moisturiser on me at all times and apply regularly
• Keep my hand out of the bath/shower. Have got DH to wash my hair for me and used my left hand to wash
• Not done any cleaning with chemicals at all. DH done it all

It cleared up. It was 95% normal. Not touched anything and woke up to this

I've put canesten on and am going to do that for a week.
Mi know they dyshidrotic eczema isn't ringworm but it keeps coming back in a circle in this exact spot and my sons rats have had ringworm.

The Dr said it wasn't but TBH non of them have even bothered to try and diagnose it so I'm going to try it.

I have almost the exact same thing on my hand and the doctors have also diagnosed it as pomplyx eczema (don't think that's spelt right) It's fine when I use steroid cream but as soon as I stop it comes back.

I notice you said your sons rats have ringworm...I also have rats but mine to my knowledge don't have ringworm. Do you handle the rats at all? I wondered if mine were causing it.

Sorry I haven’t read all of the posts, but could it be Granuloma Annulare? I have had it on my knee and my hand. Starts as a small circle and gradually spreads out. Mine didn’t look as inflamed/infected as yours but it was fairly unpleasant. I saw a dermatologist who said they could do anything and eventually it just spreads out and disappears. Good luck!

Yes but only occasionally. When he cleans out the cage I go on babysitting duty.

One of them had ringworm around the time this all started.

It was treated with canesten and disappeared after 7 days.

She just looked a bit patchy on her back.

What steroid cream are you on?

The doctor has prescribed me mometasone furoate, I was on something else less strong for a bit but nothing was getting rid of it. I apply once a day but I am supposed to be trying to use less.

I've attached some pictures of my hand at its worst, how it started.

Mine started back in September, small itchy spots and then just spread, got itchier and redder with blisters but mine never have puss in them, they dry up and flake off.

I'm so sorry OP, this must be so frustrating. I have pompholyx on my feet and the itching was awful. GP was no help and wouldn't refer to dermatology or even take swabs. The steroid cream prescribed didn't touch it and my feet were scabby and weeping. After lots of research I read that it might be linked somehow to a fungal infection (might have been on Mumsnet in fact). I had no sign of athlete's foot, but was desperate so bought Lamisil Once and used as instructed. To my massive surprise it worked and the pompholyx cleared up. As long as I apply it once roughly every year, or at the first sign of the pompholyx returning, it keeps it at bay. I know this might not work for you as it may not be fungal in your case and is on your hands, and it might just be coincidence in my case, but I know what it's like to feel desperate so thought I'd share just in case.

PS, here's the thread I read: www.mumsnet.com/talk/general_health/3422460-pompholyx-dyshidrotic-eczema