Folliculitis

Injury	Disease	Nutrition	Poison

Symptoms	Surgery	Test	Special Topic

Folliculitis, decalvans on the scalp

Folliculitis on the leg

Overview

Symptoms

Treatment

Prevention

Folliculitis

Alternative Names:

Pseudofolliculitis barbae; Tinea barbae; Barber's itch

Treatment:

To prevent further damage to the hair follicles and infection:

Minimize friction from clothing.
Avoid shaving the area if possible (if shaving is necessary, use a clean new razor blade or an electric razor each time).
Keep the area clean.

Avoid reinfection from contaminated clothing and washcloths. Hot moist compresses may promote drainage of extensive folliculitis. Topical antibiotics (mupirocin), oral antibiotics (dicloxacillin), or antifungal medications may be needed to control the infection.

Expectations (prognosis):

Folliculitis usually responds well to treatment, but may recur.

Complications:

Folliculitis may return
Infection may spread to other body areas

Calling your health care provider:

Apply home treatment and call your health care provider if symptoms recur frequently, if they persist longer than 2 or 3 days, or if the infection spreads.

Review Date: 10/29/2004
Reviewed By: Jonathan Kantor, M.D., Department of Dermatology, University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

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