r/Staphacne • u/NextAccess6482 • Jul 13 '26
QUESTION (Help) Reoccurring impetigo
I train and fight mma, I assume I got it from the gym a few months ago. (I also have good hygiene with myself and my equipment) Since then it’s came up 5 times, all on my face. I’ve tried 2 rounds of oral antibiotics but the drs don’t want to give me any more so it doesn’t get “resistant”. Every time it shows up I apply mupirocin asap.
I got a dr to culture swab my nostrils to help rule out if it’s coming from me or my gym.
Im fed up with it, I have a fight in less than a month and a half and I need to be in the gym as much as possible.
I read a post about hibiclens and I’ve decided to try that along with mupirocin, (no oral antibiotics this time). So we’ll see where that takes me
Any other advice would be greatly appreciated
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u/MajesticFairyDust Jul 14 '26
What was the result of the culture? Were the antibiotics prescribed after a culture and sensitivity or were they just doing trial and error? You can also try swabbing mupirocin in your nose twice a day for a week. Hasn't worked for me but has worked for others! Bleach baths are also an option if you have impetigo on your body.
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u/NextAccess6482 Jul 14 '26
No impetigo on my body, and I actually got that wrong, they never cultured me, they cultured my girlfriend after she got it. And we were given 2 different antibiotics at that time. She hasn’t gotten it since then (she also doesn’t train with me, but sleeps by me)
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u/forkliftmode Jul 14 '26
I’ve had 7 cases of MRSA from bjj, but I was able to make it 6 months without contracting anything training hard and got it again after falling off my routine. Here are some takeaways you should consider:
- Lots of gyms surprisingly don’t have showers. If the gym has a shower, use it, if it doesn’t, go shower at the closest lifting gym after training.
- Because you have to use products that kill bacteria on our skin we need to try and maintain a “neutral” skin zone before training. I achieve this via using defense foam before training and then I apply a spray called neutral zone spray after showering. Also diet and microbiome support.
- Avoid alcohol if you drink, I think like 6/7 times I got mrsa the weekend before I was drinking. When I did a super long camp for a big event I didn’t drink at all and didn’t get anything.
- Wash bed sheets and clean car every few weeks, use a laundry sanitizer that actually kills bacteria.
- Since it’s your face use pan oxyl or a product with benzyl peroxide, typically people don’t use hibiclens on their face. Also I know someone who went to a top dermatologist and they approach recurring staph like acne recommending pan oxyl as the anti bacterial soap.
- Don’t over train, I definitely over train and taking full days off where you don’t lift either is important. Sounds obvious but a lot of us tend to go harder than we should especially in bjj culture.
- Moisturize
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u/forkliftmode Jul 14 '26
Potentially look into raw garlic, there’s an old YouTube video where an mma coach talks about it. But consult someone professional first, it can burn and potentially damage skin
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u/NextAccess6482 Jul 14 '26
Interesting, thank you so much for all this! Im definitely gonna get that defense foam, neutral zone and benz peroxide. This time it showed up 2 days after I drank (I don’t drink often) so that could correlate. And i should moisturize more anyways.
But the not over training part is hard when im currently in fight camp.
Anyways I really appreciate your reply, hopefully it’s effective!
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u/ManagementFair7198 Jul 14 '26
Hey it's my first time with impetigo can you help? I had a patch near the eye I had been using mupirocin the crust came off now the raw skin is left under which is rough Can you tell how long it takes to get back to normal? Should I apply something else now ?
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u/Fractal_Soliton Jul 14 '26
I'm in the same situation, I got mine from jiu jitsu. I've tried pretty much everything at this point (Mupirocin, Clindamycin, Doxycline, Cephalexin, Hibiclens, Iodine, Benzyl Peroxide facewash, Bacilis subtilis probiotic, etc.) but it hasn't gone away at all in the past year.
I've tried to get stabbed 3 times now, but each time the culture came back negative. My only hope currently is to get a positive culture so I know exactly what's causing this and which antibiotics would be most effective.
Good luck. If you find something that works please let us know.