Worried and confused

[daisy26]

I was just curious and wondering if anyone knows anything or has any information about boils. My boyfriend suffers from boils on his backside, which can be pretty serious at times. It seems that as soon as one clears up another one appears, usually in the same spot. He has suffered from these since he was a teenager. He seems to think there isn't any cure and says when he was younger he went to a doctor and they pretty much said the same thing.

I recently convinced him to go to a dermatologist who confirmed that he has boils or furuncles. They lanced it and tested the fluid, which was negative for staph infection. I just worry about the presence of these and wonder what really causes them.

I have done some research on them and so much literature says they are more common in individual with diabetes, HIV, etc.

He does have a history of being very promiscuous...several years before we met. I also convinced him to get tested for STDs, which were all negative as well.

Should I be concerned that he has some horrible infection that I could risk contracting someday if we get married and have sex?

I'd appreciate any information you might have, or if you know of a better section to post this in I'll do that to.

 

[tapero]

Hi Daisy,

I see you've posted this throughout the site to get an answer. The only answer really is to have a doctor examine him, and find out the reason he gets them.

You could ask your own doctor about it.

Maybe you could ask the dermatologist he went to about it?

take care,
tapero

 

[daisy26]

I understand all that about having a doctor examine him. He's been through that already. I guess I was just hoping someone else might have experienced some similar worries and could relate to my situation. I think I'm worrying for nothing but sometimes it's just good to hear from someone else who's been through a similar situation. Keep me in your prayers.

 

[EIChief]

I have no experience with this issue, but it seems that a doctor could clear him of any "known" viruses that could be damaging to your health. Then once that is done you could have some peace going forward in your relationship.

 

[heymikey80]

I was just curious and wondering if anyone knows anything or has any information about boils. My boyfriend suffers from boils on his backside, which can be pretty serious at times. It seems that as soon as one clears up another one appears, usually in the same spot. He has suffered from these since he was a teenager. He seems to think there isn't any cure and says when he was younger he went to a doctor and they pretty much said the same thing.

I recently convinced him to go to a dermatologist who confirmed that he has boils or furuncles. They lanced it and tested the fluid, which was negative for staph infection. I just worry about the presence of these and wonder what really causes them.

I have done some research on them and so much literature says they are more common in individual with diabetes, HIV, etc.

He does have a history of being very promiscuous...several years before we met. I also convinced him to get tested for STDs, which were all negative as well.

Should I be concerned that he has some horrible infection that I could risk contracting someday if we get married and have sex?

I'd appreciate any information you might have, or if you know of a better section to post this in I'll do that to.

A few things.

There are cystic infections that are simply a dermatological issue. I have friends who dealt with this, who weren't promiscuous. One had to have some of them removed with surgery.

There are also certain forms of cystic acne that are quite severe. For what it's worth I've known some people with severe cystic acne who have been able to treat it with Loroxide or Vanoxide. These are some very carefully composed versions of benzoyl peroxide. The bp is in a separate vial so that it hasn't been dissipated by dumping the bp in a water or oil-based solution for months before it's sold. I'd recommend this (as a former user of the product, I'm not a doctor) to your dermatologist and see if they think this is the issue. On my friend's advice I used the OTC-strength versions of these products, and they were dramatically stronger than other OTC acne medications I'd used.

The boils began at puberty, so it's possible it's just some form of cystic infection or cystic acne. But while there are no cures, there could be treatments that help.

These things can simply be embarrassing to young people. So you have to consider that maybe this is the case with your boyfriend.

Among the other possibilities of this, your boyfriend, your doctor, and you ought to meet together so that your boyfriend can allow his doctor to communicate any specific test results to you that make you anxious. I know you care for one another, it's just important to get the specific answers to questions you may have.

 

[daisy26]

Thanks for the info about cystic acne. I'm going to encourage him to return to the dermatologist just to make sure everything is ok.