Folliculitis is inflammation of one or more hair follicles. It can occur anywhere on the skin.
Pseudofolliculitis barbae; Tinea barbae; Barber's itch
Folliculitis starts when hair follicles are damaged or when the follicle is blocked. For example, this may occur from rubbing against clothing or shaving. Most of the time, the damaged follicles become infected with staphylococci (staph) bacteria.
Barber's itch is a staph infection of the hair follicles in the beard area, usually the upper lip. Shaving makes it worse. Tinea barbae is similar to barber's itch, but the infection is caused by a fungus.
Pseudofolliculitis barbae is a disorder that occurs mainly in African American men. If curly beard hairs are cut too short, they may curve back into the skin and cause inflammation.
Folliculitis can affect people of all ages.
Common symptoms include a rash, itching, and pimples or pustules near a hair follicle in the neck, groin, or genital area. The pimples may crust over.
Hot, moist compresses may help drain the affected follicles.
Treatment may include antibiotics applied to the skin or taken by mouth, or an antifungal medicine.
Kenji Kabashima practices in Kyoto, Japan. Kabashima is rated as an Elite expert by MediFind in the treatment of Folliculitis. He is also highly rated in 71 other conditions, according to our data. His top areas of expertise are Contact Dermatitis, Atopic Dermatitis, Pachydermoperiostosis, Cranio Osteoarthropathy, and Mastectomy.
Sergio Galvan-Vano practices in Madrid, Spain. Galvan-Vano is rated as an Elite expert by MediFind in the treatment of Folliculitis. He is also highly rated in 29 other conditions, according to our data. His top areas of expertise are Autosomal Recessive Hypotrichosis, Female Pattern Baldness, Male Pattern Baldness, Folliculitis, and Hysterectomy.
David Rutkowski practices in Manchester, United Kingdom. Rutkowski is rated as an Elite expert by MediFind in the treatment of Folliculitis. He is also highly rated in 1 other condition, according to our data. His top areas of expertise are Folliculitis, Erosive Pustular Dermatosis of the Scalp, Basal Cell Skin Cancer, and Nevoid Basal Cell Carcinoma Syndrome.
Folliculitis often responds well to treatment, but it may come back.
Folliculitis may return or spread to other body areas.
Apply home treatment and call your provider if your symptoms:
To prevent further damage to the hair follicles and infection:
Summary: Acne keloidalis nuchae (AKN) is one of the chronic forms of scarring folliculitis, affecting predominantly the occipital scalp, seen mostly in men of African descent. Duobrii has the advantage of being the only high potency topical steroid-retinoid combination approved by the FDA with dermatologic indication. Researchers are proposing the off-labeled use of Duobrii for the management of early-mild...
Summary: The cold atmospheric plasma may provide a new and effective method for the treatment of Malassezia folliculitis. The investigators conduct this randomized controlled trial to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of cold atmospheric plasma on Malassezia folliculitis. Participants entered this double-blind placebo-controlled trial will randomly assign to treatment with either cold atmospheric plasm...
Published Date: October 10, 2020
Published By: Linda J. Vorvick, MD, Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Family Medicine, UW Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.
Dinulos JGH. Bacterial infections. In: Dinulos JGH, ed. Habif's Clinical Dermatology: A Color Guide in Diagnosis and Therapy. 7th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2021:chap 9.
James WD, Elston DM, Treat JR, Rosenbach MA, Neuhaus IM. Bacterial infections. In: James WD, Elston DM, Treat JR, Rosenbach, MA, Neuhaus IM, eds. Andrews' Diseases of the Skin: Clinical Dermatology. 13th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2020:chap 14.
James WD, Elston DM, Treat JR, Rosenbach MA, Neuhaus IM. Diseases of the skin appendages. In: James WD, Elston DM, Treat JR, Rosenbach, MA, Neuhaus IM, eds. Andrews' Diseases of the Skin: Clinical Dermatology. 13th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2020:chap 33.