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I have a couple pictures. They can vary in size and shape but usually always that tubular form.
This is exactly what I have, face, ear lobe, chest and even in my arm.
These are my revelations, UPDATED to include what lead to my healing. Yes, I think I may be healed, but this will be a lifelong condition and I'm going to have to stay on top of it for life. This blog saved my mental health!!! Thank you everyone, especially Aussie Scientist! God bless you, seriously. Here is what I've figured out, based on my science background and experimenting on my own skin.
1.) I t-h-i-n-k the group of us are actually suffering from two (or more) different issues. One is a fungus (mine, my nose looked JUST LIKE the woman whose nose you see on page 1), the other may very well be demodex mites. Their treatments overlap, but they also have some different components as well. I believe the fungus form is what you see if the keratin plugs come out easily once thoroughly dried out with clay, and the mites form is what you see when you have stretchy clear plugs with a bit of blood at the end. I think the mites are living in those plugs, and treatments like oral Ivermectin and Pyrithine Zinc shampoo on your skin will work on those, whereas they would have no impact on the fungus form. I'm only going to talk about the fungus form, because I think I have fully healed after 5 weeks, with 3 weekly doses of oral Fluconazole and all the other treatments below.
2.) The fungus living in our follicles will spread like a fungus does, with microscopic spores. Do NOT pull the plugs unless you are simultaneously filling the follicle with something to kill the fungus. The fungus spreads above our skin but possibly also underneath. (I'm using Clean&Clear cleaning agent with 3% Salicylic Acid. I've tried both apple cider vinegar and hydrogen peroxide, but they burn too much for me.) To remove the plugs that I see poking out (don't go fishing for them) I'm first drying out the plug with a clay mask (I think any clay will work) for 10 minutes (until dry), then SATURATING a cotton ball with the cleaner and rubbing the soaked cotton ball back and forth to get the critter to give up the plug. then gently rub the plug away. If it doesn't give up and you'll be tempted to pull it, repeat. More clay, try again. I've been doing this for 4 weeks now, morning and night, and I only get 5 or 6 plugs each time. There are NO more open sores on my face. My face is dry and flaking a lot, and my skin occasionally hurts, but I've been able to start moisturizing again now that my sores care gone.
3.) I also put the fungus into retreat by alternating between all the following (NOT the scientific way to do things, LOL, but sadly I'm not good at waiting a few weeks to see if one thing works): (a) Washing my whole face 2x/day with Salicyclic Acid shampoo (gently sudsing it in my hand, slathering it over, then rinsing it off gently in the shower, patting areas gently where it doesn't come off first try); (b) Athlete's Foot Cream (OTC butenafine hydrochloride -- I also wanted to try the terbinafine but is it prescription-only?); (c) Nystatin cream (sometimes alone, sometimes mixed with Lidocaine cream or Hydrocortisone cream as Aussie suggested, but I saw no difference in effectiveness with that one piece of advice), and (d) Mupirocin (prescription, I was given the ointment which is greasy and it was helpful when my skin was dry and hurt badly, compared to using the anti-fungal creams). The thing that Lidocaine and/or Hydrocortisone did for me, applied after the anti-fungal creams, was it brought down the swelling. Key: the fungus uses the inflammation as an invasion tactic. The reader who wrote she was applying Hydrogen Peroxide, despite it being damaging to her skin but she didn't care, had one thing wrong -- with the fungal form at least, you do NOT want raw red inflamed skin. I made the mistake of applying bleach to my patch on my nose, but it dripped and burned the area below the patch, and had a whole new problem to deal with. Be gentle with your skin.
4.) Mupirocin is used to treat bacterial infections (which I think those yellow puss-y scabs are) AND it's used to "inhibit growth of certain pathogenic fungi (in vitro) including dermatophytes" (per Oxford Press). Woo hoo! Double whammy. I originally dabbed the Muprocin everywhere, but it didn't seem to have much impact on the non-pussy areas of plugs, just the raw areas with the yellow scabs. Yes I wanted to continue to peel off the yellow scabs with tweezers and peel off the raised white ring around the area but I was able to keep from returning to that obsessive habit, realizing the spreading is microscopic and generally uncontrollable on such a macro level. I just suffocate the area with the Mupirocin (or pure gel from an Aloe plant) before I go to bed, and in the morning repeat the face wash and then generally the Nystatin. With the fungus, it makes that weird white cylindrical plug to protect itself in your hair follicle from being dried out. It feeds on oils (including oil-based moisturizers and cleansers), but not tea tree oil thankfully.
5.) Aussie said that Salicylic Acid will destroy the skin barrier, allowing the fungus to invade, so I began alternating with Hibiclens. He also stressed (and I agree) to keep your skin dry, no moisturizers or oils, but he did recommend to one woman with toenail fungus to soak her toes in 3% Hydrogen Peroxide and she could add eucalyptus oil or tea tree oil if she wished. I couldn't find any other info on this thread about either of those oils being safe to use, but I did feel the tea tree oil was safe. I stuck with the rule of keeping my skin as dry as possible (but drinking a lot of water to hydrate from the inside)!
6.) Dermatology appointments are hard to come by, so I realized I could pay $39.99 for resolution within 24 hours, and found one of those internet doctor sites that will write you a prescription (to your local pharmacy) if you send in a request for a virtual doctor's visit. The med techs who answered my request simply asked me to send in some photos (close up as well as zoomed out so be wary of sending in someone else's photos, thinking they're more clear than your own, that could certainly backfire on you). They wrote me prescriptions for the Mupirocin and the oral Fluconazole (1x/week for 3 weeks, which I didn't initially have a lot of faith in, but I feel it's what killed the fungus in the end, it just took 3 weeks!) and Doxicycline (which I told them I didn't want to take, as it's an antibiotic, so they took it off my prescription request no problem). I wrote back to the med tech and asked if the prescribing doctor would add Nystatin cream and they did!
7.) I've thrown out all my makeup and sponges into which I may have been double-dipping in the past, and creating petri dish environments for the fungus, and I'll be using single-serve Qtips in the future. I have tried the water-based Niacinamide Zinc serum recommended by @Leesamo on page 1, called The Ordinary, to try to rebuild my skin barrier, but that is slow in happening. For now my skin turns bright pink and HURTS if it's cold or windy outside.
8.) Now that the patches are 99% gone, and I have no more scabs (living with those was very hard, but don't pick them off!!).... I have flakey skin so I'm continuing to apply Mupirocin to my former patches before going bed, and sometimes Aquafor to the dry patches but only where I had no fungus and the skin got flakey because of what I was applying around it. I say don't apply anything greasy (Aquafor, Vaseline) to areas where you had patches. Water-based cleansers and moisturizers only! Check for non-comedogenic so it won't clog your pores and start the whole thing over again. I've been using LaRoche-Posay double repair face moisturizer, it's only $15 for a small tube at Ulta. To kill any new whiteheads popping up (I haven't seen any new red-zit acne, knock on wood), I'm using Adapalene gel (from Walmart) which is an acne medication but also contains Retinol to aid in healing. DO NOT SQUEEZE OR DIG OPEN YOUR SKIN! Put clay on it, dry it out.... then deal with it safely. I'm a life long zit-picker, and this is hard, but I never want to go through this again! Be wary of going in the sun if you're using Retinol, your skin will turn beet red and you'll damage it immensely.
9.) This sucks worse than any other skin thing I've ever dealt with, I think it started with antibiotics a year ago and then a yeast infection in my gut, so I've added a daily spoonful of Coconut Oil, plus a daily probiotic, (with Lactobacillus acidopholos), and 8 or so Vitamin D capsules daily (200 mcg total, or 8000 IU), and a daily Grape Seed Extract capsule (which kill candida yeast internally). I drink a swig of Apple Cider Vinegar each day, and have tried to cut most dairy and added sugar out of my diet. I'm still eating lots of fruit as always, and I do drink alcohol, but I'm willing to stop both those things if my condition returns after this apparent healing.
Good luck everyone, keep your skin dry, and don't pull out the plugs unless you're doing it in a way to simultaneously flood the follicle with acid (or Hibiclens) to prevent the spores from spreading. I'll be back if/ when my condition changes, but also in the meantime in case anyone has questions for me? My private email address is [Edited out]. I'm sad that Aussie left this forum, his advice was priceless to me and others. Good luck everyone. THANK YOU, Acne.org, for this forum!
This blog has finally brought me hope. Thank you everyone, especially Aussie Scientist! God bless you, seriously. Here is what I've figured out, based on my science background and experimenting on my own skin. I'm not fully healed yet, but hopeful. This is my revelation:
The fungus living in our follicles will spread like a fungus does, with microscopic spores. Do NOT pull the plugs unless you are simultaneously filling the follicle with something to kill the fungus. The fungus spreads above our skin but possibly also underneath. (I'm using Clean&Clear cleaning agent with 3% Salicylic Acid. I've tried both apple cider vinegar and hydrogen peroxide, but they burn too much for me.) To remove the plugs that I see poking out (don't go fishing for them) I'm first drying out the plug with a clay mask (I think any clay will work) for 10 minutes (until dry), then SATURATING a cotton ball with the cleaner and rubbing the soaked cotton ball back and forth to get the critter to give up the plug. then gently rub the plug away. If it doesn't give up and you'll be tempted to pull it, repeat. More clay, try again. I've been doing this a week, and my face is dry and my skin hurts, but once I feel it's safe I'll start moisturizing again. I still have a few plugs coming up but nothing like a week ago.
I've also put the fungus into retreat by alternating between all the following (NOT the scientific way to do things, LOL, but sadly I'm not good at waiting a few weeks to see if one thing works): (a) Washing my whole face 2x/day with Salicyclic Acid shampoo (gently sudsing it in my hand, slathering it over, then rinsing it off gently in the shower, patting areas gently where it doesn't come off first try); (b) Athlete's Foot Cream (OTC butenafine hydrochloride -- I also want to try the terbinafine but is it prescription-only?); (c) Nystatin cream (sometimes alone, sometimes mixed with Lidocaine cream as Aussie suggested, but I saw no difference with that one piece of advice), and (d) Mupirocin (prescription, I was given the ointment which is greasy and I feel the cream would be better, as creams are dryer). Note: Aussie said the purpose of using either Lidocaine or Hydrocortisone in conjunction with other creams was to bring down the swelling, as the fungus uses the inflammation as an invasion tactic. I'm going to try Hydrocortisone.
Mupirocin is used to treat bacterial infections (which I think those yellow pussy scabs are) AND it's used to "inhibit growth of certain pathogenic fungi (in vitro) including dermatophytes" (per Oxford Press). Woo hoo! Double whammy. I originally dabbed the muprocin everywhere, but it didn't seem to have much impact on the non-pussy areas of plugs, just the raw areas with the yellow scabs. Yes I want to continue to peel off the yellow scabs with tweezers and peel off the raised white ring around the area but I've so far been able to keep from returning to that obsessive habit, realizing the spreading is microscopic and generally uncontrollable on such a macro level. I just suffocate the area with the Mupirocin before I go to bed, and in the morning repeat the face wash and one generally the Nystatin.
Aussie said that Salicylic Acid will destroy the skin barrier, allowing the fungus to invade, so I'll be switching to Hibiclens. He also stressed (and I agree) to keep your skin dry, no moisturizers or oils, but he did recommend to one woman with toenail fungus to soak her toes in 3% Hydrogen Peroxide and she could add eucalyptus oil or tea tree oil if she wished. I couldn't find any other info on this thread about either of those oils being safe to use, so I'm sticking with the rule of keeping my skin as dry as possible (but drinking a lot of water to hydrate from the inside)!
Dermatology appointments are hard to come by, so I realized I could pay $39.99 for resolution within 24 hours, and found one of those internet doctor sites that will write you a prescription (to your local pharmacy) if you send in a request for a virtual doctor's visit. The med techs who answered my request simply asked me to send in some photos (close up as well as zoomed out so be wary of sending in someone else's photos, thinking they're more clear than your own, that could certainly backfire on you). They wrote me prescriptions for the Mupirocin and an oral Fluconazole (1x/week for 3 weeks, which I don't have a lot of faith in, based on what Aussie has said but I'll try anything) and Doxicycline (which I told them I didn't want to take, as it's an antibiotic, so they took it off my prescription request no problem). I wrote back to the med tech and asked if the prescribing doctor would add Nystatin cream and they did!
I've thrown out all my makeup and sponges into which I may have been double-dipping in the past, and creating petri dish environments for the fungus, and I'll be using single-serve Qtips in the future. I still plan to try the water-based Niacinamide Zinc serum recommended by @Leesamo on page 1, called The Ordinary, as well as the Dollar Tree athlete's foot cream (clotrimazole with aloe) recommended by @IUsed2BePretty (you still are, don't worry!!). This sucks worse than any other skin thing I've ever dealt with, good luck everyone, keep your skin dry, and don't pull out the plugs unless you're doing it in a way to simultaneously flood the follicle with acid (or Hibiclens) to prevent the spores from spreading. I'll be back to let you know how I'm doing. I'm sad that Aussie left this forum, his advice was priceless to me and others. Good luck everyone.
Wow!!
I cannot believe I've finally found the same issues as I've had for years with my skin .
All this makes perfect sense but I'm in my forties now and am in the post natal phase so my skin condition has come back ....I guess this means there's a hormonal link to it too?
I didn't have any skin issues during pregnancy
I agree with Mathteacher above there are some different issues. I definitely think mine is fungal.
I am annoyingly at a stage whereby its nearly gone but not fully resolved, but my dermatologist has agreed it could be an inflamed version of fungal folliculitis often called fungal acne online.
I think for most people fungal acne (I will call it) is as per the usual form - non inflamed, small spots.
but for some of us, our immune system has a stronger response - if you suffer from seborrheic dermatitis this is the same thing. I realised I have that on my scalp and so my immune system has an adverse reaction to malessezia whixh lives on us all.
the derm has agreed to try oral anti fungals next if my current regime doesnt clear it.
retinoid - for skin turnover
benzoyl peroxide - clears out pores and kills any bacteria, has some impact on fungal
Anti fungal shampoo - all anti fungal creams block my pores and make the condition worse
these have greatly helped but I do think oral anti fungals will reach the malessezia which is trapped inside the pores. This all started with covid masks for me - whixh was a breeding ground
@laura123 I have been dealing with this close to 2 years now. I have tried all the things you mention for months now; retin A, ketoconazole (prescription) shampoo as a face wash, and benzoyl peroxide + adapalene. Zero changes. I have also had the changes injected with steroids multiple times now. I'm not even mentioning ALL the topical anti-fungals I've tried. Nothing works.
I will be trying an oral anti-viral (acyclovir/valacyclovir) this/next week as per @shoober recommendation. I've decided to try an anti-viral first because my skin changes look just like hers, and per her last update the changes cleared up after weeks of using valacyclovir.
If that doesn't work I will be trying an oral anti-fungal (fluconazole) as my last attempt to get rid of this nightmare condition. I'm beyond fed up at this point & safe to say it's literally ruining my life 🙁
@mathteacher Can you please tell us what dose of fluconazole you were taking, how often, and for how long? Thank you!
I had 3 doses of oral fluconazole, 150 mg, each a week apart. I didnt see an improvement until a few days after dose #3. And as of today still clear (knock wood).
Hi all,
I have suffered from this skin issue for a decade and have spent hundreds of dollars on treatments and dermatologist appointments. I cannot even list the number of topicals that I have used to combat this skin issue because it would be too long. I don't know what prompted me to try a new topical but I figured out that it was worth a try. I spot-treated my wounds with Betadine Povidone-iodine, which you can get at any pharmacy or grocery store. I spot treated at night and even in the mornings, under my makeup. Within 4 days, I am half cleared up. It has now been 7 days and I only have one open sore left! It seems as if these wounds, with the small white plugs, must be Staph A and the iodine kills it. I truly hope this helps someone and I sure wish I hadn't taken 10+ years to try it.
I started taking a high dose of acyclovir (valacyclovir equivalent) on January 20th 2024. I was taking 4 grams per day (the girl you're referencing was taking 3 grams per day) for the first few days, then I tapered down the dose. It's been over 10 days now and I don't see an improvement, unfortunately 🙁 In addition to taking the pills, I was also using topical acyclovir, so extra disappointment there.
I was really hoping this would work as the characteristics of whatever this is do seem viral/HPV related. However, if that were the case, the skin changes should subside after 1-2 years without intervention...and they're not.
My last resort is to try fluconazole next If that doesn't work...I really don't know.
I was really hopeful about the anti-viral as my skin changes looked just like hers. Hopefully someone else can chime in as to whether an anti-viral worked for them. Definitely wasn't it for me 🙁
Thank you so much for your response I really appreciate the information. Im so very sorry though that it didnt work for you. Do you plan to continue for an extended period of time to see if any effects kick in? Good luck with the flucanazole if you go that route please definitely let us know if it is effective.
Seeing as several of us have had this condition completely disappear during pregnancy, my next step is to get in depth hormone testing, thyroid testing, autoimmune testing etc. to see if theres anything there that I can address. After doing every clean eating and natural health thing possible, using a billion topicals, taking every supplement on the face of the planet, and trying several medications with zero effect, I dont know what else to try. Ill report back if I can find anything to help this nightmare.
@finerfeedback I'm always glad to give updates as I'm sure there are regularly new people on here also dealing with this mess!
I don't plan to continue the acyclovir as you really shouldn't use it in such doses more than 7-10 days (the last thing I need is kidney failure on top of this). The dose I mentioned (800 mg, 4 hours apart, 5 times per day) is used for systemic infections, specifically shingles. Theoretically, I could continue using it at a lower dose, for example the dosage used for herpes prophylaxis. However, I don't plan on doing that just because I saw ZERO improvement. If there had been SOME improvement I would likely go that route. I'll also mention that I've never suffered with herpes/HPV. I've never even had a cold sore, so while I'm disappointed the acyclovir didn't work, it also makes sense it wasn't effective (it would have been weird to have a first "outbreak" be these random skin lesions that are neither oral/genital). However, I took acyclovir simply in hopes that it was SOME sort of virus (not necessarily HSV) that would be responsive to it.
I have also tried both the parasite cleanse simultaneously with the candida cleanse (with an array of herbal supplements) for 6+ weeks...no changes at all! I was eating like a rabbit when I did that, but I was willing to try anything, again it did absolutely nothing for these skin changes.
Personally, I'm NOT convinced this is hormone related; some reasons as to why:
1. If this were related to estrogen levels (increased during pregnancy) then these skin changes theoretically wouldn't be occuring in women who are taking oral contraceptives (they're elevating their estrogen levels); playing devil's advocate, we can definitely argue that is because the AMOUNT of estrogen in contraceptive pills isn't nearly as high as the surge in pregnancy.
2. I thought this may be related to increased levels of testosterone (which I've had 10+ years ago, just came up on routine blood work) which is why I agreed to go on spironolactone (drug used for hypertension, however also decreases testosterone) when these skin changes popped up now. Zero improvement while taking spironolactone.
Checking thyroid hormones (TSH/T3/T4) may be worth it, however good luck finding a doctor who will relate any sort of thyroid dysfunction to these skin changes!
Whatever this is, it's very bizarre that so many different things have helped some people, but not others. We've got everything from anti-virals, to anti-fungals, to anti-histamines, etc. I'm also taking into consideration that there are people on here misdiagnosing themselves, and we're not all going through the exact same thing.
Attempting an oral anti-fungal may be the only thing on the list I haven't tried yet.
Will definitely keep you posted! xx
@skinshit that makes sense about the acyclovir and not wanting to take too much to harm your kidneys. Goodness knows Ive taken too much of all sorts of things over the years trying to heal this with no success. I also agree that there are a lot of different issues on this thread that are being lumped together, so the treatment will vary. But when you have these horrible sores with the white spikes that dont heal, you KNOW its nothing normal that can be found in a medical book.
I dont have high hopes for checking my hormones/thyroid/autoimmune, but I figure if I can find SOMETHING wrong with myself, maybe fixing it will allow my immune system to kick in and fight this better. I have already had so many hair tests to check all sorts of levels, Ive had saliva tests, stool tests, urine tests, food sensitivity tests, even genetic testing, and still nothing has worked for me with 10+ years of seeing over 20 doctors (conventional and naturopaths) and trying EVERYTHING under the sun. I even had a root canal tooth removed in case that was the cause!
I definitely believe there is a tie to the immune system as my skin always get sooo much worse with the sores whenever I am sick. Also, in regards to pregnancy, I believe that the body goes into hyper protective mode and shuts down things it otherwise wouldnt be able to in order to protect the baby, so maybe theres something to that. I have tested blood positive for Lyme disease, so I guess there could be a link there, but I dont have many typical lyme symptoms otherwise. Anyways, if I ever find ANYTHING that works I will absolutely let everyone know as I am well aware how completely horrible and life altering it is to deal with this. Thank you again so much for updating with your results and for keeping me from trying one more thing that wasnt going to work! My very best to you and everyone else out there!
Hey everyone. I have experienced this same exact thing! Word for word of ot right down to the tweezers and painful pressure and painful swollen glands....all of it. Its MRSA. I finally found a Dr who immediately said it was MRSA and gave me an antibiotic injection, topical antibiotic and 2 weeks on oral antibiotics. I'm only on day 2 of antibiotics and OMG! Swelling and inflammation are gone, stopped oozing, painful pressure is gone and less white spots as well as the wound already healing. The relief is so amazing! First and only form of relief in such a very long time! Hope this helps!
@doubledeezy Can you tell us which topical and which oral antibiotic the doctor gave you along with the dosage? Also would be great if you can remember what the name was of the injection
There have been people on here who saw an improvement when started taking an antibiotic initially. Unfortunately, it wasnt a permanent fix.
Hopefully this isnt the case for you! Please let us know the specifics
@skinshit it makes sense it would initially show improvement with certain antibiotics but MRSA is different than staff in that it's more severe and antibiotic resistant. The oral antibiotic is cephalexin 500mg by mouth 1x a day for 14 days, the topical antibiotic is mupirocin ointment 2%, applied 3x a day and the injection was Rocephin. I'm continuing to see improvement today on day 3. Still no pain. My glands are almost back to normal, skin around wounds are normal healthy skin color now and the wound is continuing to shrink! They were quite large so it will take time I'm sure but this is 100x better than what it was. Heres a link about the staph...matches all of our symptoms. Very informative. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/21165-staph-infection-staphylococcus-infection
Here's another link about the abscesses/pus and a diagram of what it looks like https://kidshealth.org/en/teens/abscess.html
@doubledeezy Was the antibiotic injection given into your arm via IV/intramuscular or were the individual lesions injected?
I took oral doxycycline (which should work for MRSA) before (for ~14 days) & topical mupirocin with no change 🙁
Were you also pulling out these "white plugs"? (photo below is from someone on here as an example). Many of us see the skin changes pseudo-"heal" after removing the plug which doesn't seem typical for MRSA in my opinion.
I just wonder if you perhaps actually have MRSA, but some of us here have something else ?? Did your doctor take a skin culture to confirm it's staph & for antimicrobial susceptibility testing in case the cephalexin fails?
I hope this works for you! PLEASE keep us updated.
PS. I started fluconazole yesterday, so if THAT fails too I'm really going to need all the option B's I could get
@kyc142300 Thank you for posting! I'm sad to hear that fluconazole did not work for you (It's almost a week since I've started fluconazole - no changes at all). From your photo it seems like your sores ARE healing though. Are they just open and red, or are you also still getting these "plugs"?
Thanks again for commenting & please keep us posted. Seems like a lot of people are struggling with this & the majority just disappears, unfortunately. I wonder if people are simply suffering with it, had it spontaneously resolve, or if something eventually worked 🙁
Im curious how many of us developed this condition after being on an extended course of antibiotics?? I was put on a rotation of antibiotics for almost 6 solid years in junior high and high school for acne (makes me absolutely cringe to think of this medical abuse), and I only remember these sores coming along after I came off of all of the meds. My theory is that my immune system was completely obliterated allowing this pathogen to take over and now no matter what I do, I cant fix it. Anyone else develop this after extended antibiotic use?
Powdered charcoal like clay seemed to also work well. I let it sit on fresh clean skin with opened pores after a shower. I pat charcoal (from a vitamin capsule I pop open) press on the irritated are and immediately feel and see its healing process. Sometimes a plug or to will surface out or even pop out. Other times the tender area will show a tiny white head of the plug start to poke out when it wasn't visible prior. The charcoal instantly sooths tender painful areas, shrinks any crater area where plug was, minimizes sore area, immediately releases any inflammation or swelling and c a lms any itch ,scaly skin or flakes becom I bg smooth hydrated and sutures and calms redness. After I'll use fungi cream like for athletes foot or something similar
Ive had this come and go on my face the last few years. I think its a mixture of demodex and candida. (I have a weak immune system due to CKD). I use prosacea on my face once a day (it has sulfur in it) and i use clotrimazole cream twice a day, when i have an outbreak on my face. It clears it right up.