Skin Bumps with hard white centers?

[Unregistered]

i also ...

have had a few of these. hard fleshy internal nodules that look like zits, yet never fully develop. They can't be popped, but if I break the skin I can see the white nodule. i can only seem to work them out with the assistance of tweezers. without tweezers, it seems as though they retract back into the skin. leaves a volcano like surrounding. scabs, heals and then disappears.

not a known std, according to tests.. what's going on?


location: 2 spots on scrotum

 

[Unregistered]

same poster as last

have had a few of these. hard fleshy internal nodules that look like zits, yet never fully develop. They can't be popped, but if I break the skin I can see the white nodule. i can only seem to work them out with the assistance of tweezers. without tweezers, it seems as though they retract back into the skin. leaves a volcano like surrounding. scabs, heals and then disappears.

not a known std, according to tests.. what's going on?


location: 2 spots on scrotum

in addition, my derm seems just as vexxed.

 

[Unregistered]

Have any of these started in regions where you have plucked hair and gotten an entire hair root? Possibly creating a damaged hair pore......

 

[Unregistered]

ITSCHERRY wrote:

i wrote two of the last posts above dated:
01-13-2012, 02:48 AM
01-14-2012, 03:21 AM
ill just call myself itscherry for future reference.
jve already looked at the dermatology atlas and other book that the actual dermatologists study from. and i will agree that at first i was drawn to the acne pics. but also follicullitus Pityrosporum had a similar look, but my bumps are not as red they have more a skin color at first, then get red by sitting so long and the filling inside starts to push on my skin. which also led to me looking at keritosis p pics. what i can tell you, is mine is contagious, leaving out the kp and the acne. folliculitus p is cuased by a yeast wich they say is also not contagious. the others who caught this only have very few bumps on them, and they tend to heal quickly, possibly thier immune system is stonger and their skin is more resiliant than mine. if i hadnt had the major explosion of bumps i did, and had as few as they do, i wouldnt have noticed any of this to begin with, and just shrugged it off to the occasional pimple. so if you have family of people you are close to , examine them. an as for your cyst, i also looked at that option, the fact that when you take the ball out it comes back, same principal as a cyst, if you dont remove it all it will grow back. here are the derm. books answers for multiple cysts...first they ask, is the lesion solitary, or multiple...we chose multiple...secondly is it localized(A localized rash is present only on one area of the body.) generalized(A generalized skin rash is widespread, covers most of the body or is found on several parts of the body concurrently-(occurring at the same time). It may appear in the same place on both hands, feet, arms or legs, or across the back and torso) we chose generalized...here we chose the type of bump macular (A macular rash is a skin rash which presents in the form of a number of small, flat red spots,a skin eruption in which the lesions are flat and less than 1 cm in diameter0 or papular (A small, solid, usually inflammatory elevation of the skin that does not contain pus,referring to one or more small solid rounded bumps rising from the skin that are each usually 0.5 cm or less in diameter (less than a half inch across)The term "papular" is derived from Latin from "papula," a pimple -- pimply). so we go to papular which gives these answers if you are looking to call what you have a cyst...
• psoriasis
• lichen planus
• secondary syphilis
• neurofibromatosis

HERE IS THE BREAK DOWN IF YOU WISH TO LOOK YOURSELF.

Identify lesions
Is lesion solitary or are there multiple lesions?

SOLITARY

MACUAL
• portwine stain*
• fixed drug eruption
• erythema migrans

PAPUAL/nodule
• dermal nevus
• basal cell
carcinoma
• nodular
melanoma

PLAQUE
• lichen simplex
chronicus
• Bowen disease
• superficial
spreading
melanoma

ULCER
• basal cell
carcinoma
• diabetic ulcer
• primary chancre
of syphilis

LOCALIZED MULTIPLE

MACULAR
• solar
lentigines
• fixed drug
eruptioN

PLAQUE
• psoriasis
• mycosis
fungoides

NODULAR
• metastatic
cancer

PUSTULAR
• folliculitis
barbae
• herpes zoster
• impetigo

PAPULAR
• condylomata
accuminata
• syringomas
• lichen planus

VESICULAR
/BULLOUS
• herpes
zoster
• herpes
simplex

GENERALIZED MULTIPLE
MACULAR

• viral exanthem
• drug eruption

PAPULAR
• psoriasis
• lichen planus
• secondary syphilis
• neurofibromatosis
Vesicular/bullous
• varicella
• bullous
pemphigoid

PUSTULAR
• pustular
psoriasis
• smallpox

NODULAR
• metastatic
melanoma
• lipomas

THIS IS WHAT I KNOW, OUT OF ALL THE DOCTORS AND DERMATOLOGISTS IVE SEEN, I DONT HAVE A SINGLE ANSWER. SO WHY ARNT THEY TESTING TO SEE WHATS GOING ON. IF WE WERE ANYONE ELSE, FAMOUS OR RICH, WE WOULD KNOW SOMETHING MORE THAN WE DO RIGHT NOW.
TRY KEEPING A JOURNAL OF CHANGES OR THINGS THAT YOU NOTICE, ANY PATTERNS ETC..
IF WE ALL HAVE MORE INFORMATION, WE CAN FIGURE THIS THING OUT A LITTLE BETTER THAN WE HAVE TO DATE.
SO FAR I KNOW IT ISNT INFLUENCED BY TANNING OR NOT BEING IN THE SUN
I KNOW IT HAS A MONTHLY PATTERN
I KNOW THERE IS NO PUSS OR LIQUID
I KNOW A SELECT ANTI BIOTIC WORKS, WHERE OTHERS DONT(CERTAIN ANTI BIOTICS ONLY WORK FOR CERTAIN BACTERIAS)
I KNOW MY SKIN PEALS AND FLAKES RIGHT WHEN THE BUMPS START COMING BACK
I KNOW IM SICK OF ALL THIS
I KNOW IT SCARS YOUR FACE(MY SCARS ARE EXTROVERTED INSTEAD OF BEING INVERTED...SO THEY STILL LOOK LIKE A BUMP AND NOT A SCAR FORM NORMAL ACNE, LIKE A HOLE)
MY PORES HAVE BECOME LARGE ALL OVER MY FACE
THE HARD STUFF EVEN COMES OUT OF MY HAIR, BUT MY HAIR GROWS SO FAST THAT THE MATERIAL JUST SITS ON MY SCALP, AND DOESNT MAKE A BUMP. I DID LOSE HAIR AT MY AT MY HAIR LINE ON MY FACE WHERE THE BUMPS WERE ABLE TO TAKE OVER MY SKIN THERE AND MOVE SLOWLY INTO MY HAIR.
I TRIED NEEM OIL AND IT WORKED ONCE BUT THEN DIDNT ANOTHER TIME
IVE TRIED CREAMS(PERSCRIPTION) AND NON PERSCRIPTION...NOTHING IS WORKING
I CAN TELL YOU WHAT ITS NOT, BUT I CANT TELL YOU WHAT IT IS...AWSOME RIGHT
IM DEPRESSED HALF THE TIME
I HATE GOING OUT FOR PEOPLE TO LOOK AT ME
WISH I HAD A PLACE TO POST PICS...SO WE COULD ALL COMPARE THIS CRAP... MAYBE WE SHOULD WORK ON DOING JUST THAT

 

[Unregistered]

you know whats funny about all this(not thats its realy funny) but the fact that there are no answers....what is going on here

 

[Unregistered]

I feel ya

I noticed the same thing starting 14yrs ago im 28 now so for half my life i've delt with this. I first noticed it a few weeks after starting wrestling in high school(Don't know if they r related) I just assume I caught it wrestling. The effected area started on my forehead and have since spread to buttox, back, and back of legs mainly, but over time have shown up pritty much anywhere i have pores. Sometimes they come in big waves. Other times just one or two but I am rairly without one. Some years, summers do seem to have less break outs. Some times they arent sore or red and I wouldn't have noticed them if I hadn't physicly felt them or seen them. I leave them alone unless they get about the size of a small bb(like bird shot). Most of the time I only notice them once i've had an itch and i have scratched it. Left alone these tend to heal very slowly even when treated with alcohol. They will then form a pussy scab that wont heal and is very easily broken reveiling the white ball in center. Once the white center "ball" is removed the area tends to heal overnight or by the next day. The skin around the center is no longer red and inflammed and forms what I would call a normal scab. These "balls" are some time oblonged and rooted in position. Some are hard, some are soft, I can only describe these "balls" as being like a sac with a creamy white substance inside them(once smashed there is the goo and a sac) Most of the time i get them out whole. Sometime I pop them on accident b/c I use a needle to scrap a circle around them so i can get tweezers on them. When this happens they take an extremly long time to heal, weeks. The effected area does tend to be a little sore but the area touching the "ball" and the "ball" are completly pain free. In fact they are dead i cant feel them at all cept for a wierd feeling best described as a deep itch that is replaced by a temperary(5-10min) light dull pain once the ball is removed. Once removed a pit is left with a good amount of blleeding considering the size of the sore. I have extreme depression that I believe it to be caused from my unhappyness of my phisycal apperance due to this ailment. It is crippling.... Although, by wearing clothes it isn't noticable(unless on the head somewhere) I have withdrawn my self from society. I can't seem to make friends, have relationships, or hold down a job(they dont like the excuses I come up with when a few times a year I call in sick for a week at a time)for some kind of wierd reverse hypochondriac where I fear spreading it to others. I have found that good hygene(showers each day, washing bed sheets regularly, using alcohol to steralize effected areas) has lessened the number of outbreaks and the size of the oubreaks for me. I have come to the conclussion that what ever this is it is very contagious. You can spread it all over your self and to others if your not careful. If you find yourself with something like what i have described I would hope you would do everything in your power to not spread it to others. As I know how damaging this ailment can be. I guess its more profitable to treat the depression linked to this ailment than a cure would be.(Just my thoughts, not implicating anyones at fault. Proble Just another Virus floating around out there. I'lll just assume this is just another of many yet to have been discovered. Wish you all happyness and clear skin =)

 

[Unregistered]

I used to have them on my upper arms and they cleared up completely when I started shaving there. I also have some on my back but I'd feel ridiculous trying it here.

Perhaps this info will help someone.

 

[Unregistered]

itscherry....here again. finally i saw the infectious disease doctor, after 6 months of waiting. the american heath system is f$%^& up. they did a mrsa test, all negative, now i have to wait again for the specialist and my doctor to deliberate my fate and what is to come next. i am still continuing to break out, i just saw a doctor for a round of antibiotics, which will help while im on them. it is so disgusting to have to wait to get answers, after a year you think they could figure something out. but i guess that only happens when someone cares more about the patient and less about their wallet. looks like were stuck

 

[Unregistered]

This is interesting. I am having some similar issues as many of you. Mine is definitely not as severe as some of you and is localized. I have a few of these on my body at a time. My main areas are the hairline at the back of my neck and my back. Two weeks ago I went the Derm. One on my back was flaky and crusty for about 6 months and my wife worried it was Basal Carcinoma. It was about the size of a BB and slightly raised. It only hurt if I messed with it. It simply wouldn't heal. The doc was concerned so he removed it. The lab said no carcinoma.

Today, as I was on the couch, the scab caught a blanket and pulled partially off. I went to the bathroom and removed it. I was shocked to find a BB sized, whitish clear, acorn shaped mass attached below the scab. There was a large hole in my back. It bled a little but there is no pain. I took several photos.

This is one of several such happenings for me. It is pretty bizarre although I have not suffered nearly as much as many of you. I have always suffered ingrown hairs and have had several "sebacious" cysts removed. 10 years ago I had one removed from behind my ear after getting hit at the hairline by a wood truss. The cyst was biopsied and the found a 7" hair in it as well as what appeared to be a tooth! I am thinking what we are finding is the beginning of a sebacious cyst but I am not certain. It seems that many of us may have different issues with a similar physical response.

 

[Unregistered]

itscherry...answers to my dilemma!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

here i am once again to post about what the dermatologists have discovered...finally!!!!!!!
the answer to what i have....PITYROSPORUM FOLLICULITUS. FOR OVER A YEAR I HAVE BEEN GOING TO DOCTOR AFTER DOCTOR, IVE SEEN 12 DOCTORS TOTAL AND 3 DERMATOLOGISTS. ive been told by all these doctors "what i have"...from acne, eczema, hormones, depression, mrsa, scabies, kp, allergys, lupis, staph, and so on... its funny, that the only tests they mainly tried were blood tests. i did have 2 biopsy done, the first came back as a freckle(i thought that was funny) and the last which gave an answer was for the yeast fungus folliculitus(pitrosporum) how can you find an answer if you dont look? the dermatologists, i even asked for a skin scraping, but was refused and another i had asked for a medication, and was refused(funny thing is another doctor prescribed that exact medication i asked for, and it worked). the other dermatologist who said i had acne, wouldn't listen to me at all, i told him i didn't believe it was acne, and that others were infected as well, but i guess hes smarter than me, and if that's so, i am as dumb as a rock. thing is he has the rock for a brain, and i knew this wasn't right or acting like acne. so, if you know something isn't right, don't take it go and find someone who will look, and eventually you will find an answer. i have yet to start my meds., i am waiting on other members of the hosehold to see their doctors and get their meds. i dont want this crap any more and i dont want it coming back. THE PIROSPORUM FOLLICULITUS DOES CAUSE WHITE KERATIN BUILD UP IN YOUR SKIN....I GOT THIS NEXT PASSAGE FROM ONLINE SOURCE...IT SAYS...

"Histologic Featuresitrosporum folliculitus
DILATED HAIR FOLLICLES WITH "KERATIN PLUGS" CONTAINING FUNGAL SPORES" end source

those plugs are the hard white things coming out of my skin. they were surrounded by neutrophil aggregates(which is a type of white blood cell to fight infection)

the strange thing about all this, is a specific anti biotic(cephlexin) was helping to seemingly take care of the yeast fungus problem, maybe it was just masking and killing the infection causing inflammation from the yeast(that's my theory). i asked the dermatologist why this was that the antibiotics helped make it go away, but she had no answer. i had tried other antibiotics, they did not work. cephlexin is a Cephalosporins (First generation) antibiotic. Cephalexin, penicillin G, chloramphenicol, and streptomycin inhibit reactive oxygen species generation via their effect on polymorphonuclear leukocytes cell function directly, with resultant anti-inflammatory effects on the inflammatory processes.

who knows the answer, id like to know. anyway, i just hope this is the end of all this. if not, Ill be back......

 

[Unregistered]

itscherry

i just wanted to comment that i haven't used my oral med yet. but i have been having amazing results using borax as a scrub...borax is a natural anti fungal...and this may be why it is working so well for my condition. if you have no idea what my condition is, please read the itscherry submissions, or the post directly above this one. i take a cup of borax with me in the shower and a wash cloth. i get the wash cloth wet and dump some borax onto the wash cloth, i quickly wet the wash cloth again(not too wet but just enough to get the borax wet and soften it) then i scrub my body with it. it is very abrasive and you don't need to use much pressure. i leave it on for a less than a minute and rinse. i have to tell you for me, it works fast and well. i have 90% less bumps than before, without medication or creams. i do use the borax scrub on my face, but again it is very abrasive, and where you chose to use it and how, is up to you. borax will alter the ph of your skin, making it more alkaline. so something that has an acidic level for an alternative day wash would pry be best. i just use Hibiclens every other day and borax the next(altering the 2 every other day). everyones skin is different, and who knows what this may do for you. but for me, my condition was bad enough, i was willing to try anything. i know the internet posts that borax may be bad for your health(i think this is just for those who chose to drink it, i haven't become that desperate yet), but so is being depressed about life and how you look. to me, being happy with myself for a short time, is better than a long life of misery. i just thought id share what works for me. just don't over do the scrub, i know its hard not to want it gone, but slow and steady is probably your best approach. it also may dry your skin, us a good uric acid lotion to moisturize, i know these are expensive, but i have less break outs with these than traditional lotions that are all greasy. anyway, if my condition changes, or any thing comes up that may help, i will post again. good luck everyone.

 

[Unregistered]

I hope you have found the answer... I have been suffering from this for two years now and been searching for a diagnosis and treatment. I will try out your method and let you know the results. Please keep us posted, too.

 

[Unregistered]

Having Good Results`

I was surprised how many people were experiencing the same thing I have for the past couple of years. After trying so many different cures and reading as much as I could find I kind of came to the conclusion myself that the hard, stretchy cores were dead hair follicles trying to work themselves loose and out.

I kept seeing a lot of medical comments about anti-bacterial soap, exfoliation and keeping the skin soft. Here is what I have been doing for about three weeks and I am having really good results. I have been washing my face in the morning with a mild anti-bacterial face soap. Then in the evening I have been using one of the vibrating face exfoliators by Neutrogena. Once my face is clean I have been applying a Retinol night cream. My face is looking so much better! The hard sores I had are healing quickly and I haven't had any new ones for the last week. A few small white heads have come up but they clear up quickly and don't turn into the hard sores.

I am feeling much more positive that I am on the right track. I hope this may help some of you too.

 

[Unregistered]

Quick clarification

I was surprised how many people were experiencing the same thing I have for the past couple of years. After trying so many different cures and reading as much as I could find I kind of came to the conclusion myself that the hard, stretchy cores were dead hair follicles trying to work themselves loose and out.

I kept seeing a lot of medical comments about anti-bacterial soap, exfoliation and keeping the skin soft. Here is what I have been doing for about three weeks and I am having really good results. I have been washing my face in the morning with a mild anti-bacterial face soap. Then in the evening I have been using one of the vibrating face exfoliators by Neutrogena. Once my face is clean I have been applying a Retinol night cream. My face is looking so much better! The hard sores I had are healing quickly and I haven't had any new ones for the last week. A few small white heads have come up but they clear up quickly and don't turn into the hard sores.

I am feeling much more positive that I am on the right track. I hope this may help some of you too.

I wanted to follow up and clarify that I was not using a Rx Retinol cream, but a milder OTC night cream, actually the non-label version of a name brand night cream.

 

[Unregistered]

I have the same thing just for a few months, only on my forearms with maybe a total of 4 to 6 on each one. I have not been to a doctor, just breaking the skin and pulling the center out with tweezers, some come out easy and some do not. Mine are a hard rubbery like piece that range from a small round piece to a large long cylinder type which is deep in the skin and hurst like hell when its pulled out. Once it's out, the spot bleeds alot for just a few seconds and then scabs over the next day.. some will heal quickly and others will not. I DO THINK IT'S CONTAGIOUS.. My fiance' has sat here for hours digging these out and then later popped a bump of her own with the same tweezers and created the same type of bump that I had with the rubbery piece that has to be pulled out before it will heal. Most of mine were small and healed fine with just a small scar left, but I had one spot that had at least 20 of the little rubbery bastards in it, that is now a huge scar that just won't heal... I'ts like the scar tissue even has them in it. I actually used a pick and tweezers and pulled the scar tissue up and removed so many of the rubbery pieces I lost count, but after cleaning the area with alcohol and using a antibiotic cream it looked alot better and then scabbed over again only to reveal a few more were still comin up to the surface. I'm glad to know we were not the only ones but this "Mytery Bump" sucks and I really wish I knew what to do about it. Just for reference.. I'm a 35 year old male that does automotive repair and one day while working on a car and having my arm in a very tight spot that was dirty with grease, dirt, road grime, etc.. When i pulled my arm back out, I could see small bumps appear instantly on my arm that turned into these hellish creatures with the rubber center.

 

[Unregistered]

Small round semi-hard centers

I started having these small bumps around my ankles. I use my fingernail to scrap across them and end up with a small hard white ball. It isn't rooted or attached, it's just under the skin. But as soon as the skin heals, the bump is there again in the same spot. It seems like I get a few more each year.

I also found one bump on my lower hip and one on my elbow that acts the same way. They don't hurt and they heal rather quickly.

They look and feel like there's a small seed under the skin.

None of the possibilities mentioned on this forum look like what I have...

 

[Unregistered]

I had these nasty things for 30 years (they started in college). I must have plucked over a thousand of them. I felt naked if I didn't have a pair of tweezers in my pocket. Not only are they ugly and scarring, they itch like crazy until they're pulled out...and then they bleed. The ones I had were in the shape of cones, cylinders, tubes, balls sometimes a cluster of two or more. The same ones kept coming back a few times until they finally went away, but there were always new ones elsewhere to pick at. I used to "harvest" them and keep a collection of them on the arm chair when I watched T.V. at night. I've looked at them under a microscope and discovered that everyone had a small black hair running through the middle (I am blond and all my external arm hair is white). This led me to believe these are either ingrown hairs or clogged grease pores. I am 55 now and my arms are badly scarred. They look like an over-cooked pizza when the unaffected areas get tan in the summer. Ironically, neither my twin sister, her two kids or my three children have them. I am adopted, so I don't know if I got them from my bio parents.

Here's the strange part of my story. I had a massive heart attack 3 years ago. I had a 3-1/2" aneurism on my aorta and my mitral valve was 80% full of staff infection. My white blood cell count was 25,000...4 times the normal level. Just as I was admitted to the hospital, I went into respiratory arrest and my heart stopped for 25 minutes (code blue). During the time it took the medics to "paddle" me back, I lost my kidneys and suffered a stroke, which left me numb on my entire left side. Fortunately, they were able to replace my heart valves with mechanical ones and my kidneys came back after 6 months of dialysis. The total cost for my operation and recovery was more than $1M.

Here's the spooky part...I never had those white arm zits ever again after my operation. I am still scarred, but my dermis became healthy as a newborn's. I have asked many doctor friends what they make of this and the consensus is that I had heart disease all my life and my elevated white blood cell count could have been the trigger to fill hair follicle pores with those sticky little pimples. Strange that they only affected my arms and were more prevalent in the warmer months. I also noticed that tanning oil made them much worse.

I encourage anyone with this condition to get a complete cardio check-up and blood test. Then again, skin disorders are numerous and many are hard to diagnose. I am glad to find this blog because I thought I was the only one with the problem.

 

[Unregistered]

How many of you on this blog site smoke and/or drink alcohol daily? I do and I wonder if it's one of many causes for these nasty cones and balls.

 

[chickpeas]

I have the same problem! Thank you, ITSCHERRY! I cannot express how happy I am that you found an answer. As a woman with acne all over and this problem also, I'm all scarred up I hate the way I look. I can't get naked in front of anyone. It has made me depressed. I have stayed in terrible relationships because I didn't think I could get close to anyone else because of the way I look. But now, I have an answer. I cant take steps to change my problem now. I found this when I googled pityrosporum folliculitis: drbaileyskincare.com/blog/pityrosporum-folliculitis-acne-could-this-be-why-your-acne-won’t-go-away/
I hate to say it, but I'm kind of glad I'm noit the only one. I wish you all the best! Good luck!

 

[Unregistered]

I had one of these hard white bumps appear on my scrotum. Did a little research and most answers actually pointed toward a ingrown hair which is pretty common in the lower regions for furry people. After about 2 months of having this (sometimes painful) thing, a hard white ball just popped out. It's about the size of a very small bead and has no visible hair but it definitely does look like a ingrown hair does when those pop out. Make sure to scrub well and exfoliate plenty when you take a bath / shower so skin doesn't pile up and clog your hair follicles.