Furunculosis

boil

 or furuncle or furunculosis

Inflamed pus-filled swelling due to staphylococcus skin infection at a hair follicle. It is painful and feels hard. Boils usually occur in hairy areas exposed to friction and maceration. Scratching an existing skin disorder may introduce staphylococci on the skin into hair follicles and cause a boil to arise. A carbuncle occurs when several adjoining boils merge. Healing requires discharging the pus. Treatment involves antibiotics.

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furunculosis [fyu̇‚rəŋ·kyə′lō·səs]

(medicine)

A condition marked by numerous furuncles, or the recurrence of furuncles following healing of a preceding crop.

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Furunculosis 

the appearance of multiple furuncles on a circumscribed portion of skin (local furunculosis) or at different sites (general furunculosis). Local furunculosis is usually due to incorrect treatment of a furuncle and the subsequent spread of staphylococci to the surrounding skin. General furunculosis may be caused by a metabolic disorder, for example, diabetes mellitus, vitamin-A or vitamin-C deficiency, or exhaustion. The course of the disease is usually protracted and marked by recurrences. Treatment is mainly systemic and may include autohemotherapy, the administration of antibiotics or antistaphylococcal gamma globulin, the prescription of a special diet, and treatment of the primary disease.