Abscess and vomiting

[Covidwoes]

Hi everyone, I have a boil/abscess at the top of my bum (cringe!), and I'm also vomiting this morning. No fever. Abscess is very painful. Do I have a sick bug and the boil, or is the boil causing the sickness? Definitely not pregnant either!

If it is infected it can trigger vomiting, temperature etc which may require urgent medical attention.

It doesn't look too bad at the moment, although it really hurts. Temp is normal thankfully. I've been using fucidin cream which I got at the pharmacy, but it hasn't done anything.

Please get it checked ASAP. I have had this very thing twice and I ended up in hospital with sepsis. Had to have an operation to lance it and get the abcess packed.

Please see a doctor OP. Infections can turn to sepsis very quickly and if you are being sick it may well have taken hold.

Thanks everyone! I ended up in the operating theatre with something similar on my leg years and years ago, but I had a fever at the time. No fever this time. I contacted 111 and they said I'll get a call back within 6 hours.

Update! Have got flucloxacillin, so hopefully that'll do the trick!

Do you have someone with you? I only ask as my DH almost died from septic shock last year from a perianal abscess (he was resuscitated twice during surgery BP was 75/45). He had every textbook symptom of sepsis but one of them was that with the delirium he had absolutely no idea how ill he was, and kept telling me he felt better even though he wasn't, it resulted in us holding off getting advice. Of course now I'm educated about sepsis! I just asked if you had someone with you so they can look at the symptoms of sepsis and keep an eye on you, and ignore you if needed!

@toomanydicksonthedancefloor1 gosh how terrifying for you. Yes, my DH is here! Had your husband been on any antibiotics beforehand? Hope he's fully recovered now.

Pleased for you OP. No messing about with infections.

Thank you @HerewegoagainSS! The doctor took one look at it and prescribed flucloxacillin straight away, so I'm glad I went! I'm in soooo much pain though. It's throbbing so badly!

If your wee starts going dark head back to the doctor quickly. It's very rare, but a possible side effect of that antibiotic is liver failure - made DH very ill. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1884907/

Update! Antibiotics helping the pain, but the bloody thing is still as big as it was. I also now have a swollen lymph node in my groin, when I'm guessing is a reaction to the abscess. Fun times...🙈

Hope you are OK and feeling better!

Have you tried mag sulph, hot baths etc?

DH had a boil on his bum which kept returning. Had to have a small operation in the end which seems to have finally cleared it up.

@ClockwiseHoneysuckle yes I have, but it won't drain! The antibiotics definitely dried it out somewhat, but I've still got a hard lump there. I'm also still randomly vomiting!

Sounds like a pilonidal abscess, they can get bad and need surgery sometimes. Def go back to the Doc if doesn’t resolve

How are you now, OP?

Much better thanks @RonnieOmelettes! Luckily the antibiotics got rid of it!

No my DH hadn't been on antibiotics beforehand as we thought he had piles and until the GP poked around his bum (sorry!) he didn't know he could feel a big lump under the skin. He was actually about to go into septic shock (and defusing surgery) and we are now are very familiar with the symptoms of sepsis. Had we been educated beforehand he would have been treated about 4 days earlier and it would not have been a life or death situation. He was very lucky.

So glad to hear you are on the mend!