- With Mayo Clinic internist
James M. Steckelberg, M.D.
read biographyclose windowBiography of
James M. Steckelberg, M.D.
James Steckelberg, M.D.
Dr. James Steckelberg is chairman of the Division of Infectious Diseases at Mayo Clinic, a consultant and a professor of medicine at Mayo Medical School.
A native of Fremont, Neb., Dr. Steckelberg was a Rhodes Scholar and graduated from the Mayo Graduate School of Medicine as a resident in internal medicine and a fellow in infectious diseases, and is board certified in both. He is the former director of the Infectious Diseases Research Laboratory at Mayo Clinic.
Dr. Steckelberg belongs to numerous professional organizations. He is a founding member of the Musculoskeletal Infection Society of America and a fellow with the American College of Physicians and the Infectious Diseases Society of America. He has served on many Mayo Clinic committees and is a member of the Department of Medicine Leadership Committee and the executive committee of the Division of Infectious Diseases. He also served on the editorial boards of "Mayo Clinic Proceedings" and "Antimicrobial Agents & Chemotherapy" and has been an editorial reviewer for more than a dozen publications.
Dr. Steckelberg's research interests include experimental models of infection, epidemiology of infection, and antimicrobial resistance and therapy of bacterial infections.
Definition (1)
- Cellulitis infection: Is it contagious?
Risk factors (1)
- Recurrent cellulitis: What causes it?
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Question
Cellulitis infection: Is it contagious?
Is cellulitis contagious?
Answer
from James M. Steckelberg, M.D.
No, cellulitis is not directly contagious. This means that you can't catch cellulitis directly from someone who has it.
Cellulitis is a bacterial infection that occurs in the deeper layers (dermis and subcutaneous tissues) of the skin. Although the infection is apparent on the outer layer (epidermis) of skin, the infection spreads just beneath this layer in the dermis. As a result, it's improbable that the bacteria would reach the surface to cause infection in someone else.
However, it's possible — though unlikely — that you could be exposed to the bacteria that cause cellulitis if you come in direct contact with an open sore of an infected person. If the bacteria then enters an opening in your skin — such as a through a cut or other wound — you may develop a minor skin infection, and you are also at some increased risk of developing cellulitis.
Signs and symptoms of cellulitis include redness, swelling, tenderness and warmth of the affected skin. The changes in your skin may be accompanied by a fever. Left untreated, the bacterial infection may rapidly turn into a life-threatening condition. For this reason, early diagnosis and treatment of cellulitis is important.
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