Skin infection that won't clear

[Mistigri]

Any ideas?

Teenage DD has eczema which became infected during an intense period of exams two months ago. GP diagnosed a staph infection, gave antibiotics and antibiotic cream. Most of the patches cleared up but two were persistent, and she also developed a rough red rash typical of strep infections. She went back to the GP and was given fucidine cream. This helped, and one of the infected patches cleared while the other improved significantly.

However 2 weeks ago she developed conjunctivitis and at the same time the patch of eczema that had never cleared properly became infected again. She saw a GP about 10 days ago, he prescribed eye drops and more fucidine cream. The eye infection cleared but the infected patch of eczema (which is about 3-4 cm diameter, very red, swollen and weeping continuously) is still just as bad. And this morning she has conjunctivitis again ...

Wound has been treated twice daily with an antiseptic spray and fucidine, and covered with a large dressing to prevent it seeping over everything. She has been lectured about hand hygiene and seems to be taking care.

She is seeing the GP again but if anyone has any additional advice it would be very welcome. Need to get this sorted before she heads off to university.

I'm sorry to say that when this happened to me with eczema it turned out to be a very nasty staph infection and I needed a course of IV antibiotics in hospital. Have they done a swab and culture? If not I'd push hard for this given the known links between eczema and MRSA - they'll likely say that if it was MRSA there would be pus, lumps etc (my GP said this) but in hospital they told me sometimes with eczema MRSA doesn't present the same way as a post-surgical wound infection, the only way to know is a culture.

My OH had a really bad infection on his foot from a patch of skin that has flared up on a regular basis over the last 3-4 yrs, in May he ended up in hosptial on an iv and last week it reoccurred so he is back on antibiotics, the doctor is just treating the symptoms and not really getting to the cause of the issue.

I have been told that all area's have a wound management team or sometimes called a tissue viability nurse, I would ask for a referal through the doctor if you are due to go back soon, as they should be able to not just treat it but arrange any further tests and follow ups.

This will be our next step with OH's foot.

yes to swabs (should have been taken second time dd went to gp really) and wound clinic.