I've been using heroin for about a year and a half, more or less constantly. I'm more than ready to address the problem by battling through w/d and tapering with methadone. Over two months ago, irritation developed inside right nostril, then spread to left. Symptoms were text book impetigo, with honey-colored crust and discharge after removing crust. Symptoms would fluctuate; crust would diminish, skin would dry out and flake off, only to grow back repeat the same process more or less. Prescription ointment for staph infections, borrowed from friend, did not help. I saw a doctor, who prescribed a combo of Bactrim and sulfamethazone(?) for 12 days. Symptoms faded then returned just as aggressively. I was still snorting heroin throughout this entire time, very stupidly hoping the antibiotics would fix the problem. I then took a regiment of cephelaxin for 14 days and saw marked improvement, but would still wake up with crust in the morning, still peel away skin, still see some discharge then dryness, flakiness. Lab results indicated no staph infection, just typical bacterial flora. Has anyone out there had a friend who has experienced this sort of chronic skin infection amid a heroin addiction? I am now out of antibiotics and have methadone, so that I can cease the snorting of anything at all. I am very scared that symptoms will grow even worse without antibiotics.
Last edited: