Can you pop an abscess?

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asked Apr 23, 2022 in Body/Skin by bigcrowdcomedown (1,300 points)
Can you pop an abscess?

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answered Apr 24, 2022 by Cathy21 (85,770 points)
You can pop an abscess on your skin.

However although you can pop the abscess you should not pop the abscess as it can make it worse.

You should never attempt to pop an abscess on your own.

However, there are methods you can use to help the abscess drain naturally on its own by pulling the infection out.

Natural ways of doing this include using a tea bag or making a paste out of baking soda.

If you think you have a skin abscess, avoid touching, pushing, popping, or squeezing it.

Doing that can spread the infection or push it deeper inside the body, making things worse.

Try using a warm compress to see if that opens up the abscess so it can drain.

Do not attempt to drain the abscess by squeezing or pressing on it.

This can push the infected material into the deeper tissues.

Do not stick a needle or other sharp instrument into the abscess center, because you may injure an underlying blood vessel or cause the infection to spread.

A small skin abscess may drain naturally, or simply shrink, dry up and disappear without any treatment.

However, larger abscesses may need to be treated with antibiotics to clear the infection, and the pus may need to be drained.

A skin abscess is a bump that appears within or below the skin's surface — similar to a pimple, but typically larger and deeper under the skin. A skin abscess is usually full of pus, is painful to the touch, and the skin surrounding it may feel thick and swollen. It's typically due to a bacterial infection.

Abscesses usually are red, swollen, and warm to the touch, and might leak fluid.

They can develop on top of the skin, under the skin, in a tooth, or even deep inside the body.

On top of the skin, an abscess might look like an unhealed wound or a pimple; underneath the skin, it may create a swollen bump.

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