Diagnosis and Treatment of Cellulitis
A failure to recognise the symptoms of cellulitis can lead to life-threatening developments.
What is cellulitis?
Cellulitis is a bacterial infection of the skin and soft tissue. However, all cellulitis is not the same and the medical professional assessing the patient needs to be able not only to recognise the underlying cause of the patient's symptoms but also to be able to assess the severity of the condition. Some people may only be suffering with mild cellulitis which can be treated at home with antibiotics whereas other patients may have developed additional serious health problems and require emergency management in hospital.
What is the possible impact of cellulitis?
Untreated or mismanaged, cellulitis can spread to other parts of the body, such as the muscle and bone, which can prompt a severe deterioration in the patient's health.
The patient can develop sepsis, which is a life-threatening condition. Where the patient survives, they can suffer long-term complications due to organ failure.
The patient can also develop necrotising fasciitis which destroys the deep soft tissue of the body, sometimes culminating in the need for a limb amputation. Such patients are also at risk of death due to organ failure.
What are the symptoms of cellulitis?
Cellulitis usually affects the extremities although it should not be ruled out as a diagnosis in other parts of the body. For example, it can also affect the face.
A person suffering with cellulitis is likely to be exhibiting the following symptoms:
- A very painful area of skin
- Redness and tenderness of that area
- Swelling and heat in the same area
They may also be exhibiting symptoms of general illness such as a high temperature, tiredness and nausea.
These symptoms may also indicate a number of other conditions such as necrotising fasciitis which is a life-threatening medical emergency and both conditions should be considered in a patient with these symptoms.
Delayed diagnosis of cellulitis
A delay in the diagnosis of cellulitis is likely to lead to a deterioration in the patient's condition and long-term prognosis.
There is an increased chance that the patient will develop additional complications, require hospitalisation, or a more extended stay in hospital. The patient will also suffer a greater risk of organ damage, amputation and mortality.
How should cellulitis be treated?
The way in which cellulitis should be managed depends upon the severity of the condition at the time the patient visits their GP.
Patients with no additional health complications are likely to need a course of antibiotics. They may not even need to go into hospital.
For patients whose cellulitis has become more serious, they may need to be managed in hospital and, if they have developed complications, this may be a matter of emergency and require admission to an intensive care unit.
Who's at risk of cellulitis?
Some patients are also more likely to develop complications of cellulitis and a failure to monitor these patients appropriately may lead to far greater health problems and a charge of medical negligence.
As with many conditions, patients who already have a weakened immune system due either to a pre-existing condition or various types of medical treatment, are more susceptible to complications of cellulitis.
Medical negligence
A failure to recognise and treat cellulitis can rapidly bring about a serious and life-threatening change in the patient's experience of this unpleasant condition.
Where the patient suffers a significantly poorer outcome due to such a failure, it may be appropriate to make a claim for compensation for the patient's pain and long-term suffering.
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