Erysipelas is an acute
streptococcusStreptococcus is a genus of spherical Gram-positive bacteria belonging to the phylum Firmicutes and the lactic acid bacteria group. Cellular division occurs along a single axis in these bacteria, and thus they grow in chains or pairs, hence the name — from Greek στρεπτος streptos, meaning...
bacteriaBacteria are a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria have a wide range of shapes, ranging from spheres to rods and spirals...
l infection of the deep epidermis with lymphatic spread.
Risk factors
This disease is most common among the elderly, infants, and children. People with immune deficiency, diabetes,
alcoholismAlcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...
, skin ulceration, fungal infections and impaired
lymphA lymph node is a small ball or an oval-shaped organ of the immune system, distributed widely throughout the body including the armpit and stomach/gut and linked by lymphatic vessels. Lymph nodes are garrisons of B, T, and other immune cells. Lymph nodes are found all through the body, and act as...
atic drainage (e.g., after
mastectomyMastectomy is the medical term for the surgical removal of one or both breasts, partially or completely. Mastectomy is usually done to treat breast cancer; in some cases, women and some men believed to be at high risk of breast cancer have the operation prophylactically, that is, to prevent cancer...
, pelvic surgery,
bypassIn medicine, a vascular bypass generally means an alternate or additional route for blood flow, which is created in bypass surgery, e.g. coronary artery bypass surgery by moving blood vessels or implanting synthetic tubing. Vessels frequently used for the bypass are large veins taken from the...
grafting) are also at increased risk.
Signs and symptoms
Patients typically develop symptoms including high
feversFevers are a five-piece band formed in 2010 in Ottawa, Ontario. The band consists of Colin MacDougall , Jim Hopkins , Martin Charbonneau , Sarah Bradley and Mike Stauffer . Theirs is a fresh take on a classic genre, combining indie rock and electronic music...
,
shakingA tremor is an involuntary, somewhat rhythmic, muscle contraction and relaxation involving to-and-fro movements of one or more body parts. It is the most common of all involuntary movements and can affect the hands, arms, eyes, face, head, vocal folds, trunk, and legs. Most tremors occur in the...
, chills,
fatigueFatigue is a state of awareness describing a range of afflictions, usually associated with physical and/or mental weakness, though varying from a general state of lethargy to a specific work-induced burning sensation within one's muscles...
, headaches,
vomitingVomiting is the forceful expulsion of the contents of one's stomach through the mouth and sometimes the nose...
, and general illness within 48 hours of the initial infection. The erythematous skin lesion enlarges rapidly and has a sharply demarcated raised edge. It appears as a red, swollen, warm, hardened and painful
rashA rash is a change of the skin which affects its color, appearance or texture. A rash may be localized in one part of the body, or affect all the skin. Rashes may cause the skin to change color, itch, become warm, bumpy, chapped, dry, cracked or blistered, swell and may be painful. The causes, and...
, similar in consistency to an orange peel. More severe infections can result in vesicles,
bullaeA blister is a small pocket of fluid within the upper layers of the skin, typically caused by forceful rubbing , burning, freezing, chemical exposure or infection. Most blisters are filled with a clear fluid called serum or plasma...
, and petechiae, with possible skin
necrosisNecrosis is the premature death of cells in living tissue. Necrosis is caused by factors external to the cell or tissue, such as infection, toxins, or trauma. This is in contrast to apoptosis, which is a naturally occurring cause of cellular death...
.
Lymph nodeA lymph node is a small ball or an oval-shaped organ of the immune system, distributed widely throughout the body including the armpit and stomach/gut and linked by lymphatic vessels. Lymph nodes are garrisons of B, T, and other immune cells. Lymph nodes are found all through the body, and act as...
s may be swollen, and
lymphedemaLymphedema , also known as lymphatic obstruction, is a condition of localized fluid retention and tissue swelling caused by a compromised lymphatic system....
may occur. Occasionally, a red streak extending to the lymph node can be seen.
The infection may occur on any part of the skin including the face, arms, fingers, legs and toes, but it tends to favor the extremities. Fat tissue is most susceptible to infection, and facial areas typically around the eyes, ears, and cheeks. Repeated infection of the extremities can lead to chronic swelling (lymphadenitis).
Etiology
Most cases of erysipelas are due to
Streptococcus pyogenesStreptococcus pyogenes is a spherical, Gram-positive bacterium that is the cause of group A streptococcal infections. S. pyogenes displays streptococcal group A antigen on its cell wall. S...
(also known as beta-hemolytic group A streptococci), although non-group A streptococci can also be the causative agent. Historically, the face was most affected; today the legs are affected most often. The rash is due to an
exotoxinAn exotoxin is a toxin excreted by a microorganism, like bacteria, fungi, algae, and protozoa. An exotoxin can cause damage to the host by destroying cells or disrupting normal cellular metabolism. They are highly potent and can cause major damage to the host...
, not the Strep. bacteria itself and is found in areas where no bacteria are present - e.g. the infection may be in the nasopharynx, but the rash is found usually on the face and arms.
Erysipelas infections can enter the skin through minor trauma,
eczemaEczema is a form of dermatitis, or inflammation of the epidermis . In England, an estimated 5.7 million or about one in every nine people have been diagnosed with the disease by a clinician at some point in their lives.The term eczema is broadly applied to a range of persistent skin conditions...
, surgical incisions and ulcers, and often originate from strep bacteria in the subject's own nasal passages. Infection sets in after a small scratch or abrasion spreads resulting in toxaemia.
Erysipelas does not affect subcutaneous tissue. It does not release pus, only serum or serous fluid. Subcutaneous edema may lead the physician to misdiagnose it as
cellulitisCellulitis is a diffuse inflammation of connective tissue with severe inflammation of dermal and subcutaneous layers of the skin. Cellulitis can be caused by normal skin flora or by exogenous bacteria, and often occurs where the skin has previously been broken: cracks in the skin, cuts, blisters,...
, but the style of the rash is much more well circumscribed and sharply marginated than the rash of cellulitis.
Diagnosis
This disease is diagnosed mainly by the appearance of well-demarcated rash and inflammation. Blood cultures are unreliable for diagnosis of the disease, but may be used to test for
sepsisSepsis is a potentially deadly medical condition that is characterized by a whole-body inflammatory state and the presence of a known or suspected infection. The body may develop this inflammatory response by the immune system to microbes in the blood, urine, lungs, skin, or other tissues...
. Erysipelas must be differentiated from
herpes zosterHerpes zoster , commonly known as shingles and also known as zona, is a viral disease characterized by a painful skin rash with blisters in a limited area on one side of the body, often in a stripe...
,
angioedemaAngioedema or Quincke's edema is the rapid swelling of the dermis, subcutaneous tissue, mucosa and submucosal tissues. It is very similar to urticaria, but urticaria, commonly known as hives, occurs in the upper dermis...
,
contact dermatitisContact dermatitis is a term for a skin reaction resulting from exposure to allergens or irritants . Phototoxic dermatitis occurs when the allergen or irritant is activated by sunlight....
, and diffuse inflammatory
carcinomaCarcinoma is the medical term for the most common type of cancer occurring in humans. Put simply, a carcinoma is a cancer that begins in a tissue that lines the inner or outer surfaces of the body, and that generally arises from cells originating in the endodermal or ectodermal germ layer during...
of the breast.
Erysipelas can be distinguished from
cellulitisCellulitis is a diffuse inflammation of connective tissue with severe inflammation of dermal and subcutaneous layers of the skin. Cellulitis can be caused by normal skin flora or by exogenous bacteria, and often occurs where the skin has previously been broken: cracks in the skin, cuts, blisters,...
by its raised advancing edges and sharp borders. Elevation of the antistreptolysin O (ASO) titer occurs after around 10 days of illness.
Treatment
Depending on the severity, treatment involves either oral or intravenous antibiotics, using
penicillinPenicillin is a group of antibiotics derived from Penicillium fungi. They include penicillin G, procaine penicillin, benzathine penicillin, and penicillin V....
s,
clindamycinClindamycin rINN is a lincosamide antibiotic. It is usually used to treat infections with anaerobic bacteria but can also be used to treat some protozoal diseases, such as malaria...
or
erythromycinErythromycin is a macrolide antibiotic that has an antimicrobial spectrum similar to or slightly wider than that of penicillin, and is often used for people who have an allergy to penicillins. For respiratory tract infections, it has better coverage of atypical organisms, including mycoplasma and...
. While illness symptoms resolve in a day or two, the skin may take weeks to return to normal.
Because of the risk of reinfection, prophylactic antibiotics are sometimes used after resolution of the initial condition. However, this approach does not always stop reinfection.
Complications
- Spread of infection to other areas of body through the bloodstream (bacteremia
Bacteremia is the presence of bacteria in the blood. The blood is normally a sterile environment, so the detection of bacteria in the blood is always abnormal....
), including septic arthritis and infective endocarditisEndocarditis is an inflammation of the inner layer of the heart, the endocardium. It usually involves the heart valves . Other structures that may be involved include the interventricular septum, the chordae tendineae, the mural endocardium, or even on intracardiac devices...
(heart valves).
- Septic shock
Septic shock is a medical emergency caused by decreased tissue perfusion and oxygen delivery as a result of severe infection and sepsis, though the microbe may be systemic or localized to a particular site. It can cause multiple organ dysfunction syndrome and death...
.
- Recurrence of infection—Erysipelas can recur in 18–30% of cases even after antibiotic treatment.
- Lymphatic damage
- Necrotizing fasciitis
Necrotizing fasciitis , commonly known as flesh-eating disease or Flesh-eating bacteria syndrome, is a rare infection of the deeper layers of skin and subcutaneous tissues, easily spreading across the fascial plane within the subcutaneous tissue.Necrotizing fasciitis is a quickly progressing and...
—commonly known as "the flesh-eating bug". A potentially deadly exacerbation of the infection if it spreads to deeper tissue.
Deaths
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Samuel Parr , was an English schoolmaster, writer, minister and Doctor of Law. He was known in his time for political writing, and as "the Whig Johnson", though his reputation has lasted less well that Samuel Johnson's, and the resemblances were at a superficial level, Parr being no prose stylist,...
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In animals
Erysipelas is also the name given to an infection in animals caused by the bacterium
Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiaeErysipelothrix rhusiopathiae is a gram-positive, catalase-negative, rod-shaped bacterium. It grows aerobically and anaerobically and does not contain endotoxin. Distributed worldwide, E. rhusiopathiae is primarily considered an animal pathogen, causing a disease known as erysipelas in animals...
.
Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae can also infect humans, but in that case the infection is known as
erysipeloidIn humans, Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae infections most commonly present in a mild cutaneous form known as erysipeloid. E. rhusiopathiae can cause an indolent cellulitis, more commonly in individuals who handle fish and raw meat. It gains entry typically by abrasions in the hand. Bacteremia and...
.
External links