^^^ My sentiments exactly. Totally agree. You pay these incompetent fools absurd amounts of money to either tell you what you already know or to play down and dismiss your valid concerns based on THIER personal judgment/standards of what's acceptable. They hide behind their silly textbooks writing you off as paranoid when they come up short with answers. Gps aren't much better. I'm not wasting my hard earned cash on them anymore.

This folliculitis, I think I have it. Does it thrive on especially oily skin? Presents as small flesh colored bumps that don't really come to a head?

Does anyone know if this can spread from or to other parts of the body? And will the antifungal properties of tea tree be strong enough to tackle this problem?

Tea tree did nothing for me.

It can spread. It spread from my upper chest/shoulders to my stomach, my back, and the front of my thighs.

Hi. I've had PF on my chest and back for 18 years. Please believe me when i say i've tried almost everything including Roaccutane. (In my experience, the medical proffession are useless regarding treating skin conditions.) Finally, I believe I now understand what the problem was, how I was exacerbating it and what led to the solution.

First, I'll straight out tell you what I did to fix it and those who are interested can read about my story/analysis afterwards.

1. STOP showering/bathing for at least 3 days (VERY IMPORTANT). No water must contact the affected areas during this time. You can still 'bed bath' other body parts of course.

2. Apply organic cold pressed extra virgin coconut oil to the affected areas in the morning. Rub it in well but try not to put on too much as the skin can only absorb so much. Only a thin layer is needed.

3. By the next morning it should already be starting to look better. Continue applying coconut oil each morning. After 3 days your skin can probably handle a shower. Clean the affected areas with a gentle shower gel/soap. (I just used a body shop shower gel). Pat dry with fresh clean towel (VERY IMPORTANT) and apply coconut oil as normal. Don't use same towel for more than 1 shower. Skin might get a bit pink/red first or second time but this will die down and is ok. It is actually good because it will really show you that the infection is bigger than you think underneath.

4. Continue applying coconut oil daily and only showering every three days for 1 month. This should be enough time to completely heal the infection. Even if it looks clear before 1 month keep going for this time frame.

If this method works for you then you need to seriously consider the frequency of showering and suitable moisturising or you will end up back in the same situation.

That's it!!!!

The Science - As I understand it, the follicle gets infected because we are stripping away the skins natural flora (protective layer) repeatedly from showering and soaps etc. Water alone strips some flora from the skin even in soft water countries/areas so soaps etc are doing that even more. Even with moisturising after a shower, nothing replaces the skins flora except itself which seems to take at least 2-3 days to return to normal. If you shower daily AND don't moisturise then you can start to see how the problem worsens.

First we give the infection a chance to heal by letting the flora replenish itself by not showering. Secondly we use the coconut oil to treat the infection as it is anti-microbial and anti-fungal. It also moisturises the skin superficially but without chemicals.

Using fresh towels for each shower is a safeguard in case of reinfection.

My story and Eureka moment!

I took a holiday to Tenerife last year for 10 days and my PF was really, really bad at the start. After 5-6 days it had visibly gone! I was eating terribly everyday - pizzas beer etc so it threw out a previous theory I had of my diet being the problem. However, a combination of sun, even softer water and moisturising from sun tan lotion 5 or so times a day drew me to the whole stripping my skin of moisture thing.

I believe the sun was my initial coconut oil if you like. It was healing the infection by helping the skin repair itself. The sun's rays are antibacterial. This also enabled me to moisturise via sun tan lotion without worsening/aggravating the infection in the follicles. Later, it would become clear that the problem was 2 fold (infection and moisture loss) and needed to be treated simultaneously.

I returned home ecstatic thinking I'd cracked it. I continued to apply sun tan lotion as my moisturiser but I also started showering everyday. BIG MISTAKE!!! Before long the red dots were back. This is because the infection wasn't quite healed underneath yet plus I was stripping the skins moisture again. So I'd effectively wrecked all the good work from the holiday!

As healing as the sun is/was, 10 days was clearly not enough to build a strong foundation going forward. (This is why I recommend 1 month of applying the coconut oil.) After reading the properties of coconut oil on the internet I saw the potential to substitute the antibacterial properties from the sun's rays and deal with moisture loss from showering rolled into 1!!!!! Also, what could be better than a natural product?

From then on I've never looked back. 1 jar of the coconut oil cost me 15 if I remember and it lasted about 8 months!!!!! Just make sure it's organic cold pressed extra virgin coconut oil. It turns solid when stored below 25 degrees C or there abouts but it returns to oil as you touch it. Any other type may not have the antibacterial and anti fungal properties.

I don't know if my skins layers will ever have the barrier strength it once had. However, my skin is now clear and is smoother than its ever been with no signs of the infection returning even with some more frequent showering and some missed moisturising.

Apologies if this was a bit long winded but I really hope this works for even 1 other person as I definitely know how much this can get you down.

That is an interesting hypothesis, but its main point conflicts with what some others have said. Namely, the idea of moisturizing. Starving the fungus by drying it out seems to be helpful to many. Skin being moisturized seems for many people to aggravate the condition (me included). Related to that, I have read about people "sealing it off" with petroleum jelly so it can't breathe. I can't confirm this myself but others have said it worked.

Right now my #1 most effective way to keep the groin itch, red dots on my quads and the bumps on my chest from recurring is Nizoral Shampoo. I am going to see if my doctor can get me the 2% though as I am only using the OTC 1% shampoo.

My worry is that if I use this long enough, natural selection "may" occur resulting in an organism that is not affected by ketoconazole. Therefore I want to eradicate it.

That is an interesting hypothesis, but its main point conflicts with what some others have said. Namely, the idea of moisturizing. Starving the fungus by drying it out seems to be helpful to many. Skin being moisturized seems for many people to aggravate the condition (me included). Related to that, I have read about people "sealing it off" with petroleum jelly so it can't breathe. I can't confirm this myself but others have said it worked.

 

Right now my #1 most effective way to keep the groin itch, red dots on my quads and the bumps on my chest from recurring is Nizoral Shampoo. I am going to see if my doctor can get me the 2% though as I am only using the OTC 1% shampoo.

 

My worry is that if I use this long enough, natural selection "may" occur resulting in an organism that is not affected by ketoconazole. Therefore I want to eradicate it.

 

I really hope you get long term success with the Nizoral but for me even the 2% lost any impact (if it was in fact helping at all!!).

I appreciate your point about others not having luck with moisturising but if I may suggest a few things.

1. moisturising an already aggravated area can look and feel like things are getting worse in the beginning. This can lead you to think that you made the wrong decision and avoid doing it again (I've done this quite a few times!). What exactly is in the moisturiser that is being used? However, I do agree that moisturising, in itself, probably won't cure it.

2. I would suggest/re-emphasize that the problem is 2 fold by it's very nature. Like moisturising, by only treating the infection with things like Head and Shoulders or Nizoral you are at the same time/again stripping the slightly acidic protective layer from the skin (if it is even still there at all!) surrounding the follicle which is already inflamed. The depletion of this protective layer is why the folliculitis infection happened in the first place!! Basically, if you don't deal with the moisturising issue as well then you have a recurring circle situation.

Personally, I'd be interested to know how often the 'non-moisturising' people are washing and how their skin feels and looks (specifically the affected areas) after towel drying. Also, how long any improvement from whichever 'fungus drying out' method lasted. As I understand it, the act of washing wouldn't be complimenting drying the fungus out as it creates an alkaline environment on the skin which, in turn, causes the fungus to spread.

The skins natural barrier is clearly not working correctly if you have any type of folliculitis. Here's some info on this protective layer from two websites I found a while back.

Our skin is home to many tiny organisms, most of which are harmless; some are beneficial. At least one variety of bacterium is essential to the healthy environment on our skin. It feeds on the sebum, breaking down the tryglycerides into free fatty acids. The bacteria actually feed on the glycerol part of the triglyceride. This leaves fatty acids which are now "freed" from the glycerol unit that held them together. Medium chain fatty acids which are bound to the glycerol unit as they are in coconut oil have no antimicrobial properties. However, when they are broken apart into free fatty acids, they become powerful antimicrobials.

When coconut oil is put on the skin it doesn't have any immediate antimicrobial action. However, when bacteria which are always present on the skin turn these triglycerides into free fatty acids, just as it does with sebum, the result is an increase in the number of antimicrobial fatty acids on the skin and protection from infection. The free fatty acids also help to contribute to the acid environment on the skin which repels disease causing germs.

When bathing or showering, soap washes the protective layer of oil and acid off our skin. Often afterwards the skin becomes tight and dry. Adding moisturizers helps the skin feel better, but it does not replace the acid or the protective medium chain fatty acid layers that was removed. Your skin is vulnerable to infection at this time. You would think that your body would be clean and germ-free after a bath. But germs are everywhere, floating in the air, on our clothes and everything we touch. Many germs survive washing by hiding in cracks and folds of the skin. Before long your skin is again teaming with microorganisms, both good and bad. Until sweat and oils return to reestablish the body's chemical barrier your skin is vulnerable to infection. If you have a cut or cracked skin, this can allow streptococcus, staphylococcus and other harmful germs entry into the body. By using a coconut oil cream, lotion or just pure coconut oil you can quickly help reestablish the skin's natural antimicrobial and acid barrier. Many people use coconut oil on their skin after every bath.

Coconut oil will absorb easily, keep the skin soft, and yet without feeling greasy. It is not like other oils used to soften rough, dry skin. It will help to reduce chronic skin inflammation within days and be soothing and healing to wounds, blood blisters, rashes, etc. It is an excellent ingredient to use in healing salves and ointments. People have used a coconut oil/crushed garlic mixture at night to eliminate plantar warts and athlete's foot with excellent results.

Again, I'm by no means an expert and I appreciate everyones situation is different. I just know that this has been the only thing that has work permanently thus far for me and I believe it has worked based on the info/understandings given above.

For me, I didn't have a problem until I decided to do 2 things.

1. Started using salicylic acid to treat acne

2. Moisturize afterwards

Boom...then came the folliculitis. I can't prove that caused it but it probably contributed.

Hey, guys. If nobody's responding to treatments, I recommend a skin biopsy. I've been diagnosed with PF by four different derms and this thing has never truly went away. Most meds never worked to begin with either. I've recently had skin biopsies done: one on my chest, neck, chin, and forehead (yikes, I know, that's a lot. The derm wanted to make sure he didn't miss anything.) Anyway, none of them came back yeast related--actually it was bacterial. He's not sure what type of infection this is but he has me on 2 bacterial antibiotics: amoxicillan for broad spectrum bacteria infections & interpharm for anything that might have been left out. In addition, he has me taking difulcan to prevent any type of yeast infections that those other antibiotics might trigger. I've said this before that when I was sick (strep throat) Dr put me on amoxicillan and my skin was fantastic and so soft, but that junk came back. Hopefully, this does the trick.

I know how frustrating skin conditions are so if you can afford the biopsies, I suggest you do it. And tell them to get more than one sample. Reason for this is the skin they took from my chest came back with absolutely nothing. That's why the derm wanted more to work with...I hope these don't leave scars Anyway, if this solves my problems for good, I'm alright having some awesome battle scars. I'll keep everyone posted with my results.

So, the nuclear option. I've considered that as well.

I'm back to using the Metronidazole on my face. I get relief from it, and nothing from the 2% Ketoconazole cream. So as far as my face goes, my redness, itchiness, and burning, then pustules, are definitely bacterial in origin.

It's just different depending what part of the body we are talking about. A simultaneous anti-bacterial and anti-fungal nuke combined with probiotics would in hypothesis be great. The only question is, how hard is that on the body?

For everyone suffering from the condition, can you describe how your skin feels? It feels like there is some kind of film on my skin even after I wash. Sulfur seems to be keeping it under control, but I can still tell it is pretty bad. I mainly have it on my scalp, forehead, and temples. I have a suspicion this was caused by use of low dose accutane/tetracylin/doxycycline for acne.

I purchased nizoral 1% and would like to give it a try, but everyone is reporting that it loses its affectiveness. Can anyone recommend how to use nizoral, so that the results can be long term? I also started taking probiotics a week ago and hoping to see some improvement from that.

^{So I only took Accutane once and had to immediately because of severe side effects. So my derm put me back on Ketoconazole 2% twice a day and then Clarifoam once a day. She is also having me shower with Noble Soap daily. They also prescribed me Difflucan once a week and I have to take it an hour before a workout and let it sit for 12 hours before showering. I'll let you know how it goes. It's so frustrating because I get so close to being completely clear and then an outbreak happens.}

I purchased nizoral 1% and would like to give it a try, but everyone is reporting that it loses its affectiveness.

 

I have not heard this. The information that came with my Ketoconazole 2% cream stated that there are no reports of the fungi it was confirmed effective on developing any resistance.

Ok, that makes me feel better. How often do you use it? I used it the other day and it seems to be doing well on my face. I alternative with the noble pyrithione zinc soap. I think I am still getting acne though, so not sure how to fit my acne cleaners with it.

OK I am a new mom. REcently dx with foliculitis. yay. ( BUT I am already concerned my Doctor may be not treating me correctly. Here's my history: even while pregnant and the 6 months before pregnancy taking lots of antibiotics for a resistant sinus infection that was in a ver dangerous place near my brain tissue. I have been trying to keep it at bay until after the baby was born and now that I am breast feeding by taking a combination zpack and ceftin together. During the pregnancy I noticed these itchy places behind my ears on mysclap and went to the dermatologist. She initally mis dx me. Now we know it is Foliculitis. . . six months later. I am currently broken out head to toe. Pretty miserable and I'm still breast feeding. SO this is not fun. I have only been prescribed again the zpack and the ceftin to take as antibioitcs (which I did notice when I took this while pregnant the itchy places went away on my head behind my ears etc) so she thought she should prescribe them again. BUT here is why I am worried we are also now dealing with fungus. I think i have thrush which is yeast while breast feeding. I think I need ot add the difulcan tablet? Can I do htis while taking the antibiotics? ALso does anyone know i this can be contagious to my kids? my three yar old looks like she is getting this also on her chin, and cheek. and my 14 year old used my razor by accident and now she has some bmps on her? IS this possible? DO I need to take them to the doctor? Or wait and see what their bumps do? ANy thougths for my treatment and if this can be spread?

Oh btw this is what the dr has put me on: zpack, ceftin, triamcinolone cream .1% (the cream -I think made me worse...? )

last time i replied to this thread was a couple months ago, i was trying head&shoulders or nizoral scrubbed into the affected areas (my back, chest, back of thighs) and leaving on for 2mins or more. i was having moderate success with this but it in no way made anything go away. i also got prescribed an anti-fungal which didn't work either.

cutting down on sugar and refined carbs has made a huge difference.

I started taking a magnesium/calcium supplement 3 times a day, plus a liquid magnesium capsule before bed. i also added a iodine kelp supplement once a day, a vitamin d3 liquid capsule of 5000iud, an omega3 fish oil gel and a vitamin B liquid complex once a day. i started with the magnesium first, and within 3-4 days noticed a HUGE, absolutely HUGE reduction in my skin problems. all the redness and itchiness was gone, and what was left were receding bumps and scars of course. this is now 4 weeks later and i am completely, totally clear, for the first time in 15 years. i am absolutely sure it is the magnesium.

i have made no other changes to diet, lifestyle, exercise, or stress levels. i do continue to limit sugar and refined carbs.

please try this out before going with prescribed medicines, i feel amazing and have the best skin i've ever had in my adult life now. i have tried everything else before (acne oral/topical, bc pill, scrubs, washes, etc). make sure to take magnesium together with calcium, try to take the liquid form. magnesium is best absorbed by the body together with real sunlight, or vitamin D3 if you can't get any sun, this vitamin is also so important. running my hand along my back + face and not feeling a single bump but only smooth skin is something i haven't felt in a long, long time.

i'll update if anything changes.

and definitely avoid taking antibiotics - this weakens your immune system making you all the more susceptible to PF and other yeast-based fungus.

I've come to the conclusion that what I have on my upper thighs (on the sides up near my butt), my shoulders, and a small amount on my chest is a folliculitis of sorts since all acne related treatments have made it enormously worse. Everyday I wash those areas in the morning and at night with an anti-bacterial bar soap and let dry for 15 minutes, apply a layer of Lotrimin, and about a half hour later put on a thin layer of Polysporin. I have to say, I've been doing this for two weeks now and the spots on my chest are almost completely gone and the rash that I had on my legs and shoulders has diminished by half. I'm hoping it will go away completely, but I am over the moon with the progress I've seen thus far.

Any suggestions on treating combination pityrosporum and acne? I don't really know what I can do to help the condition. My face still always has these little breakouts and it clearly isnt' acne. Will a dermatologist really be able to find a solution? Seems like eliminating the problem is unrealistic and the best is to keep it under control?

Anyone try the magnesium supplements? I haven't tried those before, thinking about trying them out.

Any suggestions on treating combination pityrosporum and acne? I don't really know what I can do to help the condition. My face still always has these little breakouts and it clearly isnt' acne. Will a dermatologist really be able to find a solution? Seems like eliminating the problem is unrealistic and the best is to keep it under control?

 

Are you doing everything you can to prevent transfer from your hair and pillows to you face?

-Keep your scalp clean with anti-dandruff shampoos. Get some Nizoral and Head & Shoulders.

-Wash your sheets and pillow cases often.

Am i suffering from Pityrosporum Folliculitis or grover's disease ?

Please advice. Thanks!

Mine don't look like that.

Hi folks,

I'm fairly sure that I have PF on my back. There are a lot of red spots but they don't really look like acne either. Every acne treatment like salicylic acid and tea tree oil has only made them much worse until I've discontinued use.

However, I'm not having much luck treating the PF either. So far I've tried Head & Shoulders and two different dandruff shampoos from the chemist (ketoconazole and selenium sulfide) and they also seem to just aggravate the condition.

I have pretty sensitive skin, so are there any lighter treatments for PF?

I had PF on both thighs a month ago. I still have my prescription drug, but I didn't want to use it. I'm worried the fungus will be resistant to my prescription drug. So, I washed with tea tree shower gel (I used the body shop tea tree shower gel; any brand will do, as long as it contains tea tree oil) and for spot treatment I diluted Kiehl's Herbal Blue Astringent with Desert Essence 100% Tea tree oil. I just applied wet cotton pad (Kiehls herbal blue + tto) on my thighs for 1-2 mins twice daily. I used Kiehl's Herbal Blue astringent because it works great for my face and also for spot treatment.

My thighs are now PF free. I just realized when I looked at my thighs. There used to be several small PF spots on my thighs and now only several scars from PF remain

In my opinion, try tea tree oil for PF. you just need to dilute tea tree oil before using it, can be with water or with astringent like mine.

Hey I wanted to post in here as I think I have this. Is it worth getting referred to a dermatologist by my doctor to ask about it? The reason I ask is because I don't want to be mis-diagnosed by a derm that doesn't have a clue what this type of condition is?

Hey everyone - wanted to post for you all what cleared my Folliculitis! Literally not a million steps, 1 small thing.

I have looked at this site for years but never posted - so I figured if I could help somebody else out I should post! for those who don't want to read my short story - NYSTATIN cream is the answer. seriously. For those who do want to read my story - see below:

(you should read the story bc its an amazement!)

I have always suffered from mild acne ever since I could remember. But it didn't really affect me too much. Until recently.. Probably toward the end of August I started getting AWFUL breakouts on my CHEST which I seriously never had before.

The breakout on my chest looked as follows: SMALL white heads, literally everywhere.. and there typically was a little hair in the middle of the white head. I of course would squeeze them.. but it seriously made the situation a mILLION times worse. I literally could not understand it.

Of course thought it was acne and it would go away. Well it didn't. So I went to a dermatologist.. which was embarrassing but I needed to get this shit to go away! She prescribed me Epiduo Cream, Clyndamicin lotion, a Sodium Phosphate wash and DOXYCYCLINE. I was so glad to finally have prescription strength stuff in my hand.. I noticed a difference in my face IMMEDIATELY.. but my chest was not clearing up.. I seriously didn't get it. and it was seriously starting to depress me.

Suddenly I began researching.. why the hell do I keep getting this tiny white bumps all over my chest.. when I found out about Folliculitis. I read that there was all these different types of Folliculitis.. caused from a million different things and reasons and I was so confused but I felt like since the bumps on my chest werent responding to the acne treatment it couldn't be acne.

I got so frustrated so I remember taking the DOXYCYCLINE i was prescribed. (I wasn't taking them because I was afraid they would interfere with my birth control) so one night i took it and I remember waking up the next day and wanting to die! The bumps started spreading up to my NECK and I kept imagining if they went to my face. I knew I had to figure it out.. and immeditely stopped the doxy.

ANYWAY - I read about washing with head and shoulders.. I started to wash my chest with head and shoulders and I noticed a slight improvement.. more so that the bumps would dry out a lot faster but I would still get them. Thats sort of when I definitely figured out it wasn't acne.

SO I did some more research.. I was thinking wtf did I possibly do or what type of folliculitis I had or what caused this. ALSO I kept reading that folliculitis was itchy.. I didn't notice itching THAT much except one night in bed I kept itching my chest and it all sort of clicked for me.

I found out one of the causes for folliculitis was because of a YEAST OVERGROWTH and this can happen for many reasons, but has a lot to do with antibiotics and not taking medicine properly. Well I had definitely been an idiot and done that throughout my life. Made sense why the ACNE ANTIBIOTICS I WAS PRESCRIBED.. MADE MY CHEST SO MUCH WORSE.

SO Voila, I finally realized that I 100% had folliculitis and it had to have been from a yeast overgrowth. I remember I made a derm appointment and told them I HAVE FOLLICULITIS AND I NEED IT TAKEN CARE OF. Well I never even ended up having to go to the derm... I was sitting on my couch and I randomly decided to look in my medicine cabinet.. I was willing to try ANYTHING at this point and I saw this cream. it said NYSTATIN CREAM. it didn't have a definition.. so I googled it... I swear I finally found religion that day because when I googled it it said it was a cream to stop FUNGAL GROWTH ON THE SKIN. PROMINENTLY THE YEST FUNGUS. i was amazed. I could not believe that simply appeared in my house!

I put it on my chest.. afraid that lord knows what would happen but I swear I woke up the next morning and it was a miracle. I am not even kidding. The breakouts stopped and everything was SO less red.. i was seriously amazed. So I continued the treatment. it hasn't even been a month.. it seriously cleared up in a week. It even faded the hyperpigmentation I was left from all the old blisters!

SO SERIOUSLY.. I dont know how u get prescribed Nystatin cream or what it is typically used for.. but IT WORKS I AM TELLING YOU. YOU HAVE TO LOOK INTO IT IF YOU EVEN THINK YOU HAVE FOLLICULITIS CAUSED BY FUNGUS! (YEAST SPECIFICALLY)

Hope I was able to help somebody!

I just found this forum -- I didn't know that the skin reaction caused by malassezia was commonly misdiagnosed as acne, so I'm posting my research and experiences to help others. I'm 59 and have been to doctors and dermatologists since I was 5 years old with the same complaint, and never had an accurate diagnosis or any useful treatment. About 8 months ago I started to research this and wrote the attached .pdf.

Yes, it's a really long .pdf but the condition is complicated and lasts your entire life, so I believe it's entirely useful information. Good luck!

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