How long do boils last if left untreated?

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Answers:
You need to get it treated. Boils are actually a staph or strep infection called cellulitis. Cellulitis, if left untreated, can enter your bloodstream and cause septicemia (blood poisoning).

If you go in, what they will do is lance and drain it, and then pack it with sterile gauze. The gauze needs to stay in for a couple of days, and then it can be removed. At the same time, you will also be on antibiotics. Even with all of that, it can still take about two to three weeks to heal completely.

Go to the doctor. Don't count on one to go away by itself. If you catch it early enough, they may not even need to drain it.

Other Answers:
ewwwwwwwwww

Till they burst and even after then they tend to come back in the same spot.

about 2 months. it will hurt though if you don't get them trated.

Pop that zit!!!!!!!!

They usually pop within 24 hours, but if it comes back, u need to see a doctor and get antibiotics. I would get them now actually. Boils are fighting off some type of infection you "may" have (probably nothing serious whatsover), so you may want to check into getting the medication (antibiotics).

until they fester up so bad with infection and cause you such extreme pain and fever that you have to see a doctor.

Not a good idea to wait and see. Get boils treated by a physician. Much better then getting gangrene and suffering for any length of time.

Most have to be removed, but try a salt pack on a warm washcloth, that might draw out the pus, 3 times a day for 20 to 30 minutes

It is easy to treat them with stuff right from your fridge or garden. A tomato takes the heat out of them. Mixing sugar, with lemon juice into a poltice and using a silver coin like quarter, and wrapping them up, draws the head out over night.

gotta watch this.....can poison your blood with infection.....watch for a large painful fevered reddish area around it that gets bigger and is very visible.....go to dr if you see this....it is poisoning you and they will lance it and either stitch it or butterfly it

1 year

idk I only get one and it always comes back in the same spot, but I always clean it out and pull out the hair in it. Even if you clean it out it wont go away untill you dig the hairs out of it and pull them out. Gross but true.

1 week is the shortest......the worst part of it is that they will left dark scar......and that is really terrible so just leave it avoid touching it because it will get irritated and infected and may leave a big hole on your body dont put bandages....it needs air.. trust me coz thats my allergy when i eat noodles........instead of rashes mine is boil..one achy boil

Eventually a boil will come to a head. It will erupt, and when it does it's becomes very contagious. You have to keep it as clean as possible. It can be spread then, and can even turn into a staff infection. Which can be deadly. If you go to a doctor they may put you on an antibiotic to kill the skin infection before it comes to a head. Or they may wait until it comes to a head, lance it (make a very small incision on the head) , and then drain it of all it's infection. I would go to a doctor being that staff infection is on the rise.

if it is a boil ,some last about a week,but so don't come to a head right and have to be lanced.it could also be a spider bite,they look the same ,but are way worse .if it isn't better in a couple days see a doctor.

i have had one for like 2 weeks before....i usually pop them, but this one got really bad and when i went to the dr she had to drain it and she said it was infected, so she put me on antibiotics.i have not had one since.....weird.

Should be lanced by a Dr. You can soak it several times a day ,with antibacterial soap ,moisten a small towel with warm water, put the soap [antibacterial] on the towel wrap the area with the towel,then wrap a plastic trash bag around the moist towel, then lay a heating pad over the area,on the plastic bag . this should help the infection come to the surface of the skin .
1moist towel
2antibacterial soap
3plastic bag
4heating pad
5several times per day
6see a Dr.

Untreated a boil can last upto three weeks or more and get really infected.The sites below will tell you everything you ever want to know a bout boils:

http://www.medicinenet.com/boils/article.htm

http://www.healthline.com/search?q1=boils&utm_medium=google&utm_source=serp2&utm_campaign=serp&utm_term=boils

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How long do boils last if left untreated?

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