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Tests and diagnosis

By Mayo Clinic staff

Your doctor is likely to diagnose folliculitis simply by looking at your skin. When standard treatments fail to clear the infection, your doctor may send a sample taken from one of your pustules to a laboratory, where it's grown on a special medium (cultured) and then checked for the presence of bacteria. When doctors suspect eosinophilic folliculitis, they may remove a small tissue sample (biopsy) from an active lesion for testing.

Treatments and drugs Preparing for your appointment
References
  1. Folliculitis. American Osteopathic College of Dermatology. http://www.aocd.org/skin/dermatologic_diseases/folliculitis.html. Accessed July 2, 2011.
  2. Folliculitis. The Merck Manuals: The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals. http://www.merckmanuals.com/professional/sec11/ch129/ch129e.html. Accessed July 2, 2011.
  3. Baddour LM. Folliculitis. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed July 5, 2011.
  4. Bacterial infections. In: Habif TP. Clinical Dermatology: A Color Guide to Diagnosis and Therapy. 5th ed. Edinburgh, U.K.; New York, N.Y.: Mosby Elsevier; 2010. http://www.mdconsult.com/books/page.do?eid=4-u1.0-B978-0-7234-3541-9..00018-3&isbn=978-0-7234-3541-9&uniqId=269355909-8#4-u1.0-B978-0-7234-3541-9..00018-3. Accessed June 14, 2011.
  5. Hot tub rash (pseudomonas dermatitis/folliculitis). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/swimming/rwi/illnesses/hot-tub-rash.html. Accessed July 2, 2011.
  6. Pseudofolliculitis barbae. The Merck Manuals: The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals. http://www.merckmanuals.com/professional/sec11/ch134/ch134d.html?qt=pseudofolliculitis barbae&alt=sh. Accessed July 17, 2011.
  7. Browning J, et al. Cellulitis and superficial skin infections. In: Long SS. Principles and Practice of Pediatric Infectious Diseases Revised Reprint. 3rd ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Churchhill Livingstone Elsevier; 2009. http://www.mdconsult.com/books/page.do?eid=4-u1.0-B978-0-7020-3468-8..50078-X--cesec14&isbn=978-0-7020-3468-8&uniqId=269355909-9#4-u1.0-B978-0-7020-3468-8..50078-X--cesec14. Accessed July 17, 2011.
  8. Rajendran P, et al. HIV-associated eosinophilic folliculitis. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed July 5, 2011.
  9. Ferri FF. Folliculitis. In: Ferri FF. Ferri's Clinical Advisor 2011: Instant Diagnosis and Treatment. Philadelphia, Pa.: Elsevier Mosby; 2010. http://www.mdconsult.com/books/page.do?eid=4-u1.0-B978-0-323-05610-6..00015-9--s1050&isbn=978-0-323-05610-6&uniqId=269355909-12#4-u1.0-B978-0-323-05610-6..00015-9--s1100. Accessed July 17, 2011.
  10. Craft N, et al. Superficial cutaneous infections and pyodermas. In: Wolff K, et al. Fitzpatrick's Dermatology in General Medicine. 7th ed. New York, N.Y.: The McGraw-Hill Companies; 2008. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aID=2994673. Accessed July 17, 2011.
  11. Superficial fungal infections. In: Habif TP. Clinical Dermatology: A Color Guide to Diagnosis and Therapy. 5th ed. Edinburgh, U.K.; New York, N.Y.: Mosby Elsevier; 2010. http://www.mdconsult.com/books/page.do?eid=4-u1.0-B978-0-7234-3541-9..00022-5--s0890&isbn=978-0-7234-3541-9&sid=1185000175&uniqId=269355909-11#4-u1.0-B978-0-7234-3541-9..00022-5--s0970. Accessed July 15, 2011.
  12. Gibson LE (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. Aug. 4, 2011.
DS00512 Oct. 6, 2011

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