Draining simple skin abscesses in combination with antibiotic treatment is more effective than drainage alone, according to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Researchers examined 786 participants at six sites, of which 505 were adults and 281 were children. Simple skin abscesses are caused by Staphylococcus aureus bacteria strains.
The patients received either a placebo, clindamycin or trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole after their abscess was drained. The abscesses were five centimeters or smaller in diameter.
The study shows clindamycin had an overall cure rate of about 83 percent; trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole about 82 percent; and placebo about 70 percent.
Clindamycin and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole were equally effective in treating skin abscesses in adults, while use of clindamycin resulted in a slightly higher cure rate in children.
However, researchers noted clinicians should culture the fluid from drained abscesses to determine the bacteria strains causing the infection, so the appropriate antibiotic can be used. For example, the study included participants who had abscesses caused by clindamycin-resistant staph, because the antibiotic did not work.