For advertising information visit www.samplerpublications.com or call 859.225.4466 | June 2014
Bruises and
Boils:
When Is It
Something
More?
By Dana Sizemore, Staff Writer
Think of your skin like a perfectly fit glove. Your skin is a protective covering that serves as the
barrier between the outside world
and the inside of your body. It is
your body’s largest organ and it
serves as your first defense against
foreign invaders. Assailants such as
bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites
are kept out of your body by your
skin. This is a job your skin does
very well, unless it becomes cracked
or injured in some way. Bruises and
boils are usually a very insignificant
matter, but sometimes they are
something more.
Bruises
A contusion, or a bruise, is a
traumatic injury to the skin or the
underlying tissues. Bruises cause a
blue or purple discoloration of the
skin to appear; there can even be
swelling, pain and tenderness of
the area. A bruise can occur from
something as simple as a bump into
the dining room table or a more
traumatic injury. When the skin is
bruised, the outer protective skin
barrier is not broken, so there is
no external bleeding. The damage
is done to the blood vessels just
beneath the skin. The impact of the
injury will cause the vessels to rupture and bleed under the skin, thus
causing discoloration of skin.
When is it
something more?
Frequent bruising or bruising
very easily may be explained by
old age, the medications one is
taking, or it could be indicative of
an underlying issue. Older adults
are more susceptible to bruising because they have fewer fat
deposits beneath the skin or some
may say they have “thinner skin.”
Medications known as blood thinners, and even aspirin, can also
increase bruising.
Frequent bruising could indicate
a vitamin deficiency. Vitamins B12,
C, K and folic acid play a role in
the body’s process for clotting. A
deficiency in one of these could
contribute to bruising. Finally, there
are some bleeding disorders, like
hemophilia, that can result in a tendency to bruise.
&
Boils
A boil is a skin infection that is
usually caused by bacteria or fungi.
Boils start out as a raised area that,
over time, fill with infection and
grow in size. Boils can be very painful and most frequently occur on
the face, neck, armpits, buttocks
and thighs. In most cases a boil
develops from an infected hair follicle or a cut in the skin’s protective
barrier. A boil can be as small as a
pea or can develop into something
as large as a golf ball.
When is it
something more?
Those who suffer from diabetes
or have compromised immune
systems will be more susceptible to
developing infections, and therefore, more prone to developing
boils. Boils can be caused by the
more virulent form of staph, called
methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus
aureus. More commonly known
as MRSA, this bacterium is harder
to treat and is much more aggressive than traditional staph. If left
untreated, MRSA infections can
lead to a very serious