# Hospital Bound



## RacinJason (Mar 22, 2009)

Friday morning - I get home from work and I have a terrible burning sensation in my lower shin and the top of my foot where my shin meets my foot a nice crop of clear blisters (some as big as a dime). Okay, first aid 101 is to take care of the blisters with some ointment and LEAVE THE ALONE. 

Saturday morning - blisters already getting smaller, color in my foot is much better. But the pain is really bad. Feels like scalding water was poured on the top of my foot and lower shin. So basically when I move my foot, my eyes roll up into my head and my teech clinch and I give out a BOO BOO.

Well, it's late Saturday night and I'm now in horrific pain when I move. Like somebody rubbing sandpaper on a horrible sunburn. I'm going straight to the ER in the morning. From what I read, it sounds like I will be staying for a few days. I guess it could be cellulitis.

Do the symptoms sound like cellulitis? Or did I just get a case of swamp foot from wearing an ankle sock that got soaked when I stepped into a puddle and I let my foot be wet all night. I heard cellulitis is painful like an ach, my pain is burning with pin pricks.

My prediction
Diagnosis - Cellulitis (MSSA)
Duration in hospital - 3 days
Laptop taken away - 5 minutes after my doctor walks in the room on monday morning. He has done it before.
18 hours after being admitted, nicotine withdrawl turns me into a mental patient.


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## RacinJason (Mar 22, 2009)

I guess it would help if I gave more symptoms.

Skin is pink, warm but not fever warm.
My temperature is normal. No chills, no sweating.
No nausuea, no other "digestive" problems.


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## jewels_mystery (Mar 22, 2009)

I hope everything worked out and your feeling better.


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## RacinJason (Mar 22, 2009)

missaf said:


> Any red lines leading up your leg?
> 
> I'm wishing you the best, and an easy fight with the medical staff.



Thanks for the support. I'm still at work. So I came on for one last look before I get out of here. I have NO OTHER SYMPTOMS. Just irritated skin (red) and a burning sensation and some pins and needles sensation.

No red streaks, no fever, my lymphnodes (groin) are not inflammed. There are no FINGERS (toxic styrations? sp?) I've also been told that it should feel like I have more of a muscle ache then a burning sensation. The edema really exploded on my right leg, and now I'm suspecting that its irritated skin. I never drink beer, but I had a couple of the non-alchoholic beers. They made me ballon up like a blowfish by the way! The burning sensation I think is from skin stretch. I don't have any "ache" commonly associated with cellulitis. I'm really on the fence here about the hospital. I think I might go to urgent care and get some antibiotics....unless the Doctor points at my shin and starts shrieking like Homer Simpson "CALL 911" "CALL 911"

While I'm not ashamed of being fat, some of the health problems that come with it are less the desirable.

Cheers!


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## SamanthaNY (Mar 22, 2009)

If the symptoms are the same or worse, and you haven't already gone... 

You _should _definitely go to the ER, but I suspect it's not cellulitis - those usually present with very warm, swollen and red skin. Blisters not caused by rubbing the skin usually indicate some allergic reaction or presence of infectious agent. Severe pain is never good. That alone is almost always a sign that you *should* go to the hospital. ASAP.

Having had cellulitis in the past, you know you're more prone to it now, and that it should be treated quickly. The problem with waiting is that you give whatever this is more of a chance to get a hold of your system while you wait for it to show more symptoms. If this is some sort of infection that goes systemic, you're looking at higher risk and much longer treatment, so going now equals getting out earlier.

Hope you're better soon!


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## Flyin Lilac (Mar 23, 2009)

Scalding pain and blisters ... just tossin' this out there --- Have the dr. ponder the possibility of shingles. Very weird place to get them, but you never know.


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## MuleVariationsNYC (Mar 23, 2009)

Shingles was my first thought as well. Going to the ER is smart. Good luck.




Flyin Lilac said:


> Scalding pain and blisters ... just tossin' this out there --- Have the dr. ponder the possibility of shingles. Very weird place to get them, but you never know.


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## Miss Vickie (Mar 23, 2009)

Yeah, it does sound like shingles. That's kind of an odd spot I think, but anywhere there are nerve bundles, you can get shingles. I once knew a woman who got them on the back of her neck/head. A co-worker of mine recently had them on her side/back. It sounds like really horrible pain. 

Jason, did you get seen? What did they say?


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## SamanthaNY (Mar 23, 2009)

I always thought shingles was almost always on the trunk of the body, not the extremeties. But yeah... otherwise, it does sound like that's a good guess. 

Whatever it is, I hope the reason we haven't heard from you is that you're under treatment, if needed!


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## Sandie S-R (Mar 23, 2009)

RacinJason said:


> Thanks for the support. I'm still at work. So I came on for one last look before I get out of here. I have NO OTHER SYMPTOMS. Just irritated skin (red) and a burning sensation and some pins and needles sensation.
> 
> No red streaks, no fever, my lymphnodes (groin) are not inflammed. There are no FINGERS (toxic styrations? sp?) I've also been told that it should feel like I have more of a muscle ache then a burning sensation. The edema really exploded on my right leg, and now I'm suspecting that its irritated skin. I never drink beer, but I had a couple of the non-alchoholic beers. They made me ballon up like a blowfish by the way! The burning sensation I think is from skin stretch. I don't have any "ache" commonly associated with cellulitis. I'm really on the fence here about the hospital. I think I might go to urgent care and get some antibiotics....unless the Doctor points at my shin and starts shrieking like Homer Simpson "CALL 911" "CALL 911"
> 
> ...




Jas,

I've had cellulitis 5 or 6 times. Most of them were the dull ache and were the *Staff* infection kind of cellulitis that required antibiotics and staying off the leg, etc. 

However once I had cellulitis that was caused by a *Strep* infection that got into my leg from a very small cut in my toe and a visit to the public pool. 

That one felt like scalding water had been poured on my shin and it looked like it too. I ended up 2 weeks in the hospital and it was a horrible experience. Left a nasty scar too. 

Get to the hospital, STAT. Let us know how it goes.


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## SamanthaNY (Mar 25, 2009)

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Beuller?


Update?


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## RacinJason (Mar 26, 2009)

Okay, I'm doing good. I was put on a hardcore antibiotic. So far everything is going well. I got to go home the same night and am on a couple different drugs.

I'm doing very well. I have a friend that is taking care of the blisters, and they are very painful. So far, so good. I'm doing very well and expect to be back to normal by the end of this week.


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## RacinJason (Mar 27, 2009)

Okay it came back Staph Aureus. They changed out one drug for another and I'm healing really quickly. Cellulitis is nothing to play with. I went to the clinic about 9PM the same day I was on here complaining. I said I had no temp etc. etc. etc. Yeah, well I may not have had a temp when I got home. But after sleeping all the day the redness spread up to my knee and I had a temp of 99.6. I normally run right around 97.5.

I figure this is kharma for being such a prick in Hyde Park to the anti-gun people. I will chock this up to the notion that it's better to keep your mouth closed and let the world think your a fool, then to open it and confirm it.


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## SamanthaNY (Mar 27, 2009)

RacinJason said:


> Okay it came back Staph Aureus. They changed out one drug for another and I'm healing really quickly. Cellulitis is nothing to play with. I went to the clinic about 9PM the same day I was on here complaining. I said I had no temp etc. etc. etc. Yeah, well I may not have had a temp when I got home. But after sleeping all the day the redness spread up to my knee and I had a temp of 99.6. I normally run right around 97.5.
> 
> I figure this is kharma for being such a prick in Hyde Park to the anti-gun people. I will chock this up to the notion that it's better to keep your mouth closed and let the world think your a fool, then to open it and confirm it.



Glad you got quick treatment and that you're now on the mend. 

With all the nasty bugs around today, too many people dismiss stuff like this as "just a skin problem", when in fact they deserve immediate attention.


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## RacinJason (Mar 27, 2009)

Thanks Samantha. Your the reason I got worried enough to go to the Urgent Care Clinic. If you didn't chime in I would have waited too long and ended up with a potentially deadly case of blood poisoning. I figured I would have waited until monday and by that time who knows how far the infection would have spread. Just running a fever is sign enough I was in trouble.


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## SamanthaNY (Mar 28, 2009)

Wow, so sometimes it's good to be a nag! . Generally, if someone is concerned enough to write a post about something health-wise, it merits attention... so depending on the situation, I'm on the side of getting it checked out. 

I'm just glad it ended up that you're getting better, Jason. That's all that matters! :happy:


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