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What is impetigo? — Impetigo is a skin infection that usually affects children. It can happen if bacteria (germs) get into cuts, scrapes, or other small openings in the skin.
Impetigo is most common when the weather is warm and humid. It spreads easily between people who live together or spend a lot of time together.
What are the symptoms of impetigo? — Impetigo usually causes bumps on the skin, usually on the face, arms, or legs. The bumps often have scabs that form a yellow, gold, or brown crust (picture 1). The skin around the bumps might also be red.
Some people with impetigo can have blisters. When the blisters break, they can leave painful sores and scabs (picture 2 and picture 3).
How do I know if I have impetigo? — Your doctor or nurse will probably be able to tell just by looking at your skin. It's possible that your doctor or nurse will take samples of pus from one of your blisters. That way they can test the pus. But that is not always necessary.
How is impetigo treated? — That depends on how bad your infection is. You might need an antibiotic cream or ointment, or you might need antibiotic pills.
If you have just a few affected spots that do not go deep into the skin, you might just need a cream or ointment. But if a lot of your skin is affected, or the infection goes deep, you might need antibiotic pills.
The antibiotic ointment experts recommend for impetigo is a prescription medicine called mupirocin (sample brand name: Bactroban) or retapamulin (sample brand name: Altabax). You must put this medicine on the infected parts of your skin. Be sure to do this for as long as your doctor or nurse tells you to. Otherwise, the infection could come back.
If your doctor or nurse gives you antibiotic pills, you will probably have to take them for several days. Take all the antibiotics prescribed to you, even if your skin clears up before you finish the medicine.
How can I avoid getting impetigo again? — The best way to keep from spreading or catching impetigo is to wash your hands often with soap and water. When washing is not possible, you can use an alcohol-based hand rub.
