# Toe Infection...Fungal? (graphic)



## MELOC

i bought a new pair of shoes a couple weeks ago to use as work shoes.unfortunately, they are waterproof and do not breathe very well. i have had the occasional episodes of athlete's feet over the years, but i now have developed something new. i have little red bumps, like blisters, on the top of my second toe. they do not seem painful, but they seem to have spread over the past few days. the ones that have broken weep clear fluid...not pus. i had some funky discoloration between the oldest ones...a few of which i did break early on just to see what was going on.

just to shed a little more light on the situation, the shoes are treated with a silver based substance that is supposed to inhibit fungal growth. if what i have is not a fungal infection, i was considering the possibility that it is an allergic reaction...even though i have had such shoes before with no reaction.

the bumps started on the second toe of both feet at the same time. the left one has spread while the right does not seem to. i also noticed the bumps on the big toe of at least one of my feet. i was trying to be patient...watchfully waiting while i tried to treat the bumps, but the spread on the toe pictured has startled me. i have tried treating with alcohol, tea tree oil, anti fungal foot cream and porter's salve (which contains lots of groovy stuff...google it).

beyond fungal infection, i was only able to glean info about two conditions related to poor circulation, a compromised immune system and diabetes. full blown diabetes is probably not happening...at least not at this point in my life, but i am a smoker, so i probably have deficient circulation.

i just wanted opinions before i seek medical advice...which is expensive. i apologize for the gross pictures.


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## Nature_Lover

Does it itch? Does it burn?
It really looks like the athlete's foot I struggle with in the winter, and it itches until I break open the blisters, clear fluid.

I'm going to guess that the alcohol dried out the skin, and that you burned it with the tea tree oil.

If I were you, I'd use an over the counter athlete's foot spray twice a day, and make sure the whole foot has a chance to dry out completely, every day. Also, spray the shoes.

If you don't use the spray, you can soak your foot with 50/50 vinegar water to acidify the environment, then let it dry on there, you can also use straight urine the same way. 
Or go to a doctor for a culture, meds, and a diabetes test.
Good Luck!


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## MELOC

it seems to have spread a little further since i took those pics last night. it is now on the last knuckle of that toe...technically the foot and a bit more on the big toe.

it does not itch and does not burn. i felt a modicum of discomfort today when i put on socks and started my day at work.

i considered the possibility of the tea tree oil burning it, but i have used tea tree oil many times with no ill effects. perhaps if so it is because of the thin skin? i attribute the discoloration to my efforts to pop the initial blisters...but i am not sure.

this is kind of freaking me out. i have had the "funky foot" several times in my life, but i have never had anything that looked like blisters or whatever. the only factor is the new shoes. i have worn a similar pair in the past, but never for 9 hours a day at work.


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## Nature_Lover

If its spreading that fast, you might want to go to a Walgreens "Take Care" clinic, its cheaper than some co-pays.
I don't have insurance anymore.

I hope someone here can help you.
Let us know what you find out.


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## Jimmy B

When I have this type of problem or similar I take and buy the quart size bottles of both Rubbing Alcohol and Peroxide dump them in a container big enough to fit my size 13's and let it soak for 20 minutes each foot. If it is some kind of fungus please spray your tub after showering with some kind of bleach or disenfectant for yourself and others that use it. Also white socks when working if you have to wear dark socks put the white ones underneath. The foot soaking should be done in evening after returning home and in morning prior to leaving for work. Helps get rid of my foot problems. Also get a spray disinfectant for shoes.

JB


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## elliemaeg

I tend to get fungal infections at times and this doesnt look like what I get. Doesnt mean it isnt but what I get does itch and is on my legs and ankles at times. Yours looks like there are bumps. You may be allergice to something the inside of the shoe is made out of? Just my thoughts on this.


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## MELOC

it has gotten worse. the entire toe looks like the top in the original picture, with the difference being that the bottom half is not so dark. the bumps have joined and the entire thing is red. there is still no real pain, but the bumps have spread on the big toe. 

i had considered that i was perhaps allergic to the silver based anti-fungal agent built into the shoes. whatever i have looks to be spreading. it must be alive, lol. IT'S ALIVE!

i have started soaking my feet in an indeterminate amount of peroxide and water before bed. have done this the last two nights. they seem to look better after i do, but perhaps that is just a bleaching effect. they look bad when i remove the socks after a day in the wet shoes. i need to stop wearing the shoes asap...at least for extended periods of time. i will also find a pair of shoes that breath asap....no matter what they are.

i am still undecided on spending $150+ for a doctor to write me a prescription. if they decide to culture the stuff, who knows how much that will cost? i am not a total fool. i will not let it get much worse. if soaking does not help and the shoe and sock switch (bought the aweful and cheap cotton socks at wally world today...packing up the wool socks i wear year round'), i will definitely seek help. 

i just wish i had some idea of what i am dealing with.


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## jennytw

If you google Athletes foot pictures you may find some that look like yours (I think i did).


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## MELOC

11-10-10


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## Texasdirtdigger

When my DH gets anything "funky", on his feet,he gives them a really good spray of Lysol. I know............. But, it works every time.


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## Jay27

Kind of looks like poison ivy bumps to me...


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## MELOC

i agree...complete with clear discharge. the thing is, it doesn't itch and i also have a bit on my other foot...just a bump or two here and there.


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## Jay27

I've had poison ivy that didn't itch... also had some that I scratched bloody. Having it on the other foot wouldn't surprise me... I've had poison ivy start on my wrist and end up with it all kinds of stupid places. 

All-Stop is hands down the best for poison ivy. If it is something else, the All-Stop won't hurt. It is a general anticeptic that can be used on cuts, scrapes and burns as well. Google 'all-stop'


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## MELOC

i decided to soak in peroxide this morning instead of waiting until the evening because the stuff that spread onto my middle toe looked a little "weepy". things look better now, so the advice to soak twice a day may be the best so far.

however, i fell from a porch roof today and landed on a rocking chair, the post of which nailed me right in the spine between the shoulder blades. got the wind knocked out of me and a little dizzy...and things not only hurt, but felt very...weird. i thought i had fractured a vertebrae, so i went to the ER. nothing is broken...so the back should be ok. so, since i was there and all, i asked the doc to look at my toes. we didn't go into detail very much and nothing was cultured, but i got a prescription for ketoconazole...an anti-fungal agent taken orally. i decided to start it in a day or two as i do not wish to overload my system as i am also on vicodin and 800mg motrin. i am not a fan of the ibuprofen, but i decided to be "compliant" and take it to keep the inflammation down. i really don't want to overwork my kidneys and liver, so i will wait a day or two and keep on with the peroxide soak.


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## Nature_Lover

Wow, You're lucky you got away without real/permanent damage to your spine. Keep moving and stretching it (gently) so it doesn't freeze up on you. 
Put on some good music and enjoy those vicodin!
I hope you feel better soon.

FWIW I wouldn't use peroxide on skin you are trying to heal, it kills germs as well as new tissue cells, stick with something acidic, vinegar, lemon juice, or strong iced tea would work as a foot soak.


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## Fae

That oral fungus medicine is bad for the liver or kidneys one I can't remember right this minute.


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## dragonchick

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0000780

Says its not the best thing for your liver under certain conditions.


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## Cyngbaeld

That is an allergic reaction to something, either in the shoe, or that you ate that is coming out in the sweat.

Use a steroid cream on it and keep your feet dry. Don't take the antifungal. It is not a fungus. 

I get this every so often and the steroid normally will clear it up if I catch it in time and haven't got too bad an exposure to the allergen. If it continues to spread and the blisters get bigger, you may need a course of oral steroids. Go to a dermatologist, not the ER.


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## MELOC

i did find something interesting while researching the anti-fungal drug. there is a type of yeast infection that, in some of the pictures i have seen, can resemble what i have...at least in the early stages.

i just don't see what i could be allergic to. i stopped wearing the shoes. nothing else has changed besides wearing the shoes and then not wearing them. 

i am tempted to take the drug. what has spread onto my big toe has now gotten worse and between the first three toes, there is a bit of it spreading.


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## deb

MELOC said:


> i did find something interesting while researching the anti-fungal drug. there is a type of yeast infection that, in some of the pictures i have seen, can resemble what i have...at least in the early stages.
> 
> i just don't see what i could be allergic to. i stopped wearing the shoes. nothing else has changed besides wearing the shoes and then not wearing them.
> 
> i am tempted to take the drug. what has spread onto my big toe has now gotten worse and between the first three toes, there is a bit of it spreading.


It is fungal. I have had this kind of foot fungus before. If it was an allergic reaction, it wouldn't spread like that over time. 

If you don't want to take the antifungal pills right away try this:

Buy a small tube of Terbinafine Hydrochloride aka Lotrimin. WalMart makes a generic version that is inexpensive. 

In the morning wash your feet then dry them completely using a hair dryer. Put on the Lotrimin and let the feet air dry a minute then put on white cotton socks. 

Take your shoes off immediately when you get home at night, wash your fee then dry them completely using a hair dryer. Put on the Lotrimin and let the feet air dry a minute then put on clean white cotton socks. 

If the area in between your toes is really nasty, you can put some Lotrimin on a bit of cotton and put it in that space. 

I would stop wearing your waterproof shoes . Inside the toe of your shoe is probably very moist and that means the fungus is living in shoe's lining. You have to stop wearing the shoes because your feet are being exposed to the fungus each time you wear the shoes. 

If this treatment helps your feet a lot then you may be able to avoid taking the pills. If this treatment helps your feet for a while and then the fungus comes back, then you will probably have to use the pills to kill the fungus.

BTW I would also cut your toe nails shorter so there are less nooks and crannies for the fungus to survive in.

deb
in wi


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## MELOC

thanks for the advise, deb. about the nails, lol, two things...one is that i was avoiding any unnecessary interaction with the feet if at all possible...two is that i can trim the little fellers short, but i need to keep the big ones longer because i have had slight issues in the past with having them get ingrown. the status quo has been working well for a long time, so i won't mess with it. 

the infection has gotten worse. it has spread quite a bit between the toes and on top of the foot. i even have a patch of itch, discomfort and discoloration on my leg by my ankle. 

went to the family doctor last friday who prescribed an antibiotic...cephalexin... in case the infection was bacterial. she referred me to a podiatrist. well...i found a different one who i saw today because the other one could not get me in until nov. 29th! so the family doctor says "they may have to take your nail..." and then i can't get to see a foot doctor until the 29th? i don't think so! so i made a few calls and pleaded my case and saw the foot doctor today.

he thinks it could be either bacterial or fungal and said it was "interesting". not very comforting...

he dismissed the impact of the wet shoes and said it is probably due to having the nail impacted and the cuticle disturbed by either a short shoe or by bumping my toe...which is quite possible as i bump my darn toes all the time, lol.

i was surprised he didn't swab the toe for a culture, but he said it would turn up nothing but junk. i am to continue on with the antibiotics until i return to see him next week. in the meantime, i am supposed to get blood work done in case i have to use the anti-fungal drug. he also wants to see if i have a systemic infection (my terminology). he definitely thinks it is "infectious"..whatever that means medically. he took x-rays to set a baseline to make sure the infection does not reach the bone.

i am also supposed to get more aggressive with washing (use a cloth). i have kinda been avoiding washing it "aggressively" because of a fear it would help to spread the infection. i am to use gauze and wrap it. i can use a powder (i bought 1% tolnaftate...tinactin) to help keep it dry in shoes. i also bought what i hope are "airy" shoes. clean white towels and white cotton socks...of course...and bleach them.

if it does not look better by next wednesday, they will take a biopsy for study. they will also probably start me on the ketoconazole anti-fungal.

another change is to switch from hydrogen peroxide soaking for 20 minutes to an epsom salt soak for 15 minutes.

time will tell how it all works out. i really hate to lose a toe nail...or a toe for that matter.

never having had anything like this before, i would recommend that anyone who sees such bumps take action and seek help right away. you really don't want this freaky stuff taking over like it has for me.

interesting side note...not that i think this is MRSA, but there have been a large number of people in pa and maryland who have gotten MRSA recently...some locally. i am also working with a fellow who has gotten similar bumps on his hands and forearms. strangely enough, i saw another guy i know, while i was shopping for foot remedies and shoes, who was picking up prescriptions for the red spotty bumps on his forearms! just too weird.


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## rabbitpatch

For what it's worth "infectious" means "contagious" which would explain why it is spreading.

Most of the general population carries MRSA on their skin anyway. Some individuals are just more susceptible to it than others. When you have to worry about MRSA is when it gets into a wound (which is technically possible with your toes) or when it complicates a respiratory infection (such as pneumonia). If you get it in a scratch or other small skin break, it can cause inflammation that looks similar to a boil. I've never had it, but I've heard the pain is excruciating - which is actually good news for you. You say what you have doesn't hurt, so it is highly unlikely that you have MRSA.


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## MELOC

the pictures i have seen online also look different. i see pus on those pictures and i have no pus.

this is getting bad. i am supposed to see the podiatrist again on wednesday. still no idea what my lab results are in terms of liver function suitable to handle the ketoconazole...should be ok i would think. also, there was some sort of sample of blood taken to test the infection if it is systemic. if no improvement by then with the antibiotics, and i don't really see any, then they will biopsy and start the anti-fungal. i just feel that is too long to wait. i am getting worried. i would just go ahead and start taking the anti-fungal, but since i am on the antibiotic, i have no idea if i should.

i alsways seem to need a doctor or dentist during a holiday. this is a bad time to try to get in to see anyone, and now it is the weekend, too. i will try to call tomorrow to see if anyone is in the office, i guess.


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## rabbitpatch

If those were my toes, I know what I would do.....but I'm no doctor and I'm sure most doctors would say don't do it.....LOL


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## Ray

I have been taking and using colloidal Silver for several years now and I must say it sure seems to help me alot, I have diabetes and it takes three months to heal a sore, but by taking oraly and soaking the sore in silver colloid water, I heal in a normal time like I used too. Do a search on colloidal Silver, for fungus and such and see what you think. I make my own now for years, its easy and quick. best wishes, ray


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## MELOC

it throws me for a loop...the silver thing. the shoes i bought were infused with silver to battle fungus. one wonders what the actual cause of the infection was? was it the occasional use of foot creams that helped to breed a super fungus? instead, perhaps i should have continued the use of the product until i was sure nothing (minor athlete's feet issues) were eliminated. could the occasional use of such products work like taking only a few days worth of antibiotics...causing the organism to evolve to something that is resistant to regular strength drugs?

here is the update. i am healing well. first they had me try antibiotics in the case that the infection was bacterial. i used cephalexin for 10 days with no affect. i then took it upon myself, on a holiday weekend when i could get no help apart from the emergency room, to begin taking the anti-fungal drug ketoconazole. it took 5-8 days to notice a difference. the keto worked, but it took a week. i also was told to use either 1% tolnaftate powder or a prescribed cream, nystatin and triamcinolone acetonide...or both of them twice per day. when the blisters, which spread to my foot at the bottom of all of my toes including 4 of the five toes and between them, were "juicy", i had to use the powder. when things started drying up, i used the cream.

the entire 2nd toe turned black. part of the big toe did as well as well as some of the webbing between the toes. now most all of that has scabbed over and peeled off. i was so happy to see pink skin beneath the black skin. i now have feeling back in the bad toe. it was numb under all of that dead, black skin. 

i do not think there was anything alternative i could have done to help the infection. i am pretty sure the ketoconozole was the major component in my recovery. i wish i had taken it from the start and the infection would not have spread so far. i lost a week of work and some hunting time because my foot was so sore from the blistered skin.

all i can say is that if anyone notices anything abnormal on their feet like i did, please address it asap before it gets out of hand. i think i came very close to being in big, big trouble.


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