Self-Care Guidelines
There are no self-care treatments for cellulitis. See your infant's physician immediately or take the infant to the emergency room. If an arm or leg is involved, you can raise (elevate) the affected body part to reduce or prevent swelling.
When to Seek Medical Care
If your child develops a tender, red, warm, enlarging area on the skin, see a doctor as soon as possible. If your child also has fever and chills, or if the area is on the child's face, you should go to the emergency room.
If your child is currently being treated for a skin infection that has not improved after 2–3 days of antibiotics, return to the child's doctor.
Community-associated methicillin-resistant
Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) is a strain of "staph" bacteria resistant to antibiotics in the penicillin family, which have been the cornerstone of antibiotic therapy for staph and skin infections for decades. CA-MRSA previously infected only small segments of the population, such as health care workers and persons using injection drugs. However, CA-MRSA is now a common cause of skin infections in the general population. While CA-MRSA bacteria are resistant to penicillin and penicillin-related antibiotics, most staph infections with CA-MRSA can be easily treated by health care practitioners using local skin care and commonly available non-penicillin-family antibiotics. Rarely, CA-MRSA can cause the serious skin and soft tissue (deeper) infection cellulitis, which requires intravenous (IV) antibiotics in most people to clear the infection. If you think your child may have a cellulitis, contact his or her doctor immediately.
Signs and Symptoms
