Boils

Boils are inflamed hair follicles, also called folliculitis. It favors hairy areas of the body, i.e., scalp, beard areas, armpits, and groins. It can be secondary to friction, trauma, or infection with Staphylococcus bacteria. Some people may even experience frequent and repeated outbreaks, a condition called hidradenitis suppurativa. We can treat the condition with antimicrobial washes, corticosteroid injections, topical, oral antibiotics and minor excision surgeries. In severe cases, frequent boils are present in the context of systemic autoinflammatory syndromes, such that one may also have arthritis, severe acne, and etc. There is a repertoire of well-studied systemic biologics we can prescribe to help.