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Complications
By Mayo Clinic staffImpetigo typically isn't dangerous, but sometimes it may lead to rare but serious complications, including:
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Poststreptococcal glomerulonephritis (PSGN). This kidney inflammation may develop after a streptococcal infection such as strep throat or impetigo. It occurs when antibodies formed as a result of the infection damage the small structures (glomeruli) that filter waste in your kidneys. Although most people recover without any lasting damage, PSGN may lead to chronic kidney failure.
Signs and symptoms of PSGN commonly appear about two weeks after an infection. They include facial swelling — especially around the eyes — decreased urination, blood in the urine, high blood pressure, and stiff or painful joints. Most often, PSGN affects children between the ages of 6 and 10 years. Adults who develop PSGN tend to have more serious symptoms than children do and are less likely to make a full recovery. Although antibiotics can cure strep infections, they don't prevent PSGN.
- Cellulitis. This potentially serious infection affects the tissues underlying your skin and eventually may spread to your lymph nodes and into the bloodstream. Left untreated, cellulitis can quickly become life-threatening.
- Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection. MRSA is a strain of staph bacteria that resists most antibiotics. It can cause serious skin infections that expand and worsen rapidly and are extremely difficult to treat. The skin infection may start as a red, swollen pimple or boil that drains pus. MRSA may also cause pneumonia and blood infections.
Other complications include:
- Scarring
- Lightening (hypopigmentation) or darkening (hyperpigmentation) of the skin
- Skin infections. In: Habif TP. Habif: Clinical Dermatology. 4th ed. St. Louis, Mo.: Mosby; 2009. http://www.mdconsult.com/book/player/book.do?method=display&type=bookPage&decorator=header&eid=4-u1.0-B978-0-7234-3541-9..00018-3&displayedEid=4-u1.0-B978-0-7234-3541-9..00018-3--s0060&uniq=213489709&isbn=978-0-7234-3541-9. Accessed Aug. 10, 2010.
- Impetigo. In: Ferri FF. Ferri's Clinical Advisor 2010. St. Louis, Mo.: Mosby; 2009. http://www.mdconsult.com/book/player/book.do?method=display&type=bookPage&decorator=header&eid=4-u1.0-B978-0-323-05610-6..00018-4--s0510&uniq=213489709&isbn=978-0-323-05610-6&sid=1035787662. Accessed Aug. 10, 2010.
- Browning J, et al. Cellulitis and Superficial Skin Infections. In: Long SS, et al., eds. Principles and Practice of Pediatric Infectious Diseases. 3rd ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Churchill Livingstone Elsevier; 2008. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/213489709-18/1035787662/1679/76.html#4-u1.0-B978-0-443-06687-0..50075-8--cesec3_1544. Accessed Aug. 10, 2010.
- Lio PA, et al. Topical Antibacterial Agents. Infectious Disease Clinics of North America. 2009;23:945.
- Waggoner-Fountain LA. Child Care and Communicable Diseases. In: Kliegman RM, et al. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics. 18th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2007. Accessed Aug. 10, 2010.
- Gibson LE (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. Aug. 12, 2010.
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