Pus doesn't serve any function. It is simply the byproduct of the immune defense. With pustules, your body may be able to slowly absorb and break down the pus without treatment. The pustule may also drain naturally, eventually shrinking and drying up.
Discharge - If the wound is discharging small amounts of pus, it is a positive sign of healing. However, if there is continuous drainage and you start noticing bad odor or have discoloration, the wound is likely infected.
Most abscesses need to be drained. But, in some cases, you can treat them with antibiotics. This can also help an abscess drain on its own.
“A wound that's oozing pus definitely means you have a bacterial infection,” said Dr. Brady Didion, a Marshfield Clinic Health System family medicine physician. An incision or wound that's healing well looks slightly red and may seep clear fluid.
Neutrophils, a type of leukocyte, have the specific task of attacking harmful fungi or bacteria. For this reason, pus also contains dead bacteria. Macrophages, another type of leukocyte, detect the foreign bodies and release an alarm system in the form of small, cell-signaling protein molecules called cytokines.
Unlike other infections, antibiotics alone will not usually cure an abscess. In general an abscess must open and drain in order for it to improve. Sometimes draining occurs on its own, but generally it must be opened with the help of a warm compress or by a doctor in a procedure called incision and drainage (I&D).
However, antibiotics alone may not be enough to clear a skin abscess, and the pus may need to be drained to clear the infection. If a skin abscess is not drained, it may continue to grow and fill with pus until it bursts, which can be painful and can cause the infection to spread or come back.
A wound that's healing can produce a clear or pink fluid. An infected wound can produce a yellowish, bad-smelling fluid called pus. When fluid seeps from a wound, it is called wound drainage.
Although pus is normally of a whitish-yellow hue, changes in the color can be observed under certain circumstances. Pus is sometimes green because of the presence of myeloperoxidase, an intensely green antibacterial protein produced by some types of white blood cells.
Once the pus has been removed, the cavity needs to heal upwards from the inside out, so the opening in your skin is left open. If the cavity is deep, your surgeon will place a pack (antiseptic dressing) in it to keep it open, allowing pus to drain out and your wound to heal properly.
Antibiotics may have been prescribed if the infection is spreading around the wound. But you may not need them to treat a simple abscess. The wound will take about 1 to 2 weeks to heal, depending on the size of the abscess. Healthy tissue will grow from the bottom and sides of the opening until it seals over.
Serous drainage is a sign that your immune system is working correctly to heal a wound. Serous drainage is normal in small amounts. Large amounts of serous drainage can be a sign of an infection, so reach out to a healthcare provider if you have a lot of wound drainage.
There are four stages of wound healing - Hemostasis, inflammatory, proliferation, and maturation.
Call Your Doctor If:
Wound becomes more painful. Redness starts to spread. Pus or fever occurs.
Green pus is a potential warning sign of a pseudomonas bacterial infection caused by a bacterium called Pseudomonas aeruginosa. This color of pus is often accompanied by a foul odor. A possible indicator of a staph infection or strep. A brown pus infection could be associated with a liver infection.
From medical point of view, there are no foods responsible for pus formation. Milk is not also an issue, it is a myth. But certain oily, spicy, non veg stuffs do make problems in defecation with burning and other problems Hope this clears your query. Wishing you fine recovery.
If you have purulent discharge or other symptoms of infection, you will need treatment so that it doesn't get worse. Your doctor may need to clean the wound and apply new dressings. They can rinse the site with an antibiotic solution if the infection is small.
Usually, an abscess is only surgically drained when more conservative methods, such as applying hot compresses or taking antibiotics, have not worked. If an abscess enlarges or becomes increasingly painful, it must be drained promptly to avoid the danger of systemic infection (sepsis), which is life-threatening.
Abscess drainage generally takes less than 1 hour to complete. Unlike traditional surgery, you will not undergo general anesthesia. Instead, you will be sedated prior to the start of your procedure, which keeps you comfortable and at ease.
Wound drainage that turns cloudy, yellow, or tan is called seropurulent and is usually a sign that the wound is becoming colonized and treatment changes are needed.