I’m hoping to get fellow athletes’ input on crotch-boils from riding… fun subject, I know!
I started triathlon training last summer, and have rode consistently since then w/ few hiccups. I recently got a new bike and, before getting my fit proper, did a very intense ride (okay, the fitting was terrible in that the seat was probably 1/2" too high, and on my short legs this led to a lot of back/forth wobble)
I thought I was chafing myself, but now have a boil - I hope that’s what it is… - the size of a grape, where my thigh meets my groin.
Is this common, or common-enough? I know I need to get to a hospital but I’m scared $*&Fless (and uninsured), so was hoping to run this by you guys first. I’ve never had a boil or blister there ever in a year of riding (~80-110mi / week on average), then I got a new bike (a fixed gear) to do shorter/intense rides on and, before properly fitting the seat, end up with this…
Thank you so much in advance for any replies that aren’t ridicule.
I would also venture a guess that you have a saddle sore. I wouldn’t be too concerned about it. I’ve heard that taking a bath in Epsom salts can help, though I’ve never personally used this remedy. Otherwise, just keep the affected area as clean as possible (i.e change out of bike shorts quickly after a ride (if you can ride), make sure to shower frequently, etc) and it will eventually heal up.
It’s definitely a full-on boil/abcess/cellulitis/etc if it’s puss inside, and not a swollen gland… The ride in question that kicked this off was on saturday, it just felt like chaffing but sunday in bath I realized there was something there… it felt like a hard-ish lima bean at that point, and has been pretty consistent size (~small grape, maybe a 75% increase in size) since monday morning. I’ve just been keeping salty (epsom), warm rags on it
Easier said than done my man. Saddle sores are tempting- the thrill of victory from a a successful pop is truly a joyous occasion. But the agony of defeat is nasty.
Having had both I can tell you there is a world of difference. Saddle sore = throw some chamois cream on and keep going, with a boil I had to get someone to tie my shoes because the pain was so intense if I bent over and clothing rubbed against it. Also, the boil would be incredibly painful for a few days, than eventually pop and the pain would go away but would recur. Sometimes it would be months before it showed up again, sometimes years. Eventually I went to a doctor and they put a drain in it to fully remove all the nasty stuff and its never happened since. If its a boil have a doctor take care of it. It’s pretty awesome to be in college and have to get your roommates to tie your shoes on account of your ass boil.
Simple. DZ Nuts before the ride, and anti-bacterial soap right after the ride. Follow that regimine and what you have now will be gone in a week and won’t ever come back.
If the soap doesn’t say “anti-bacterial”, then it isn’t.
My wife & I both had these issues often in the past. We even went to an infectious disease specialist with little long-term help. Maybe my advice won’t help you but here it is for your consideration. Basics: always use good, clean bike shorts (I use Desoto 400 milers, FWIW), always apply some kind of chamois cream (I use vitamin A&D ointment because it is darn cheap and never washes our of the shorts no matter how much you sweat), clean up ASAP after biking (alcohol wipes if a shower is not immediately available), apply powder after clean up to keep the area dry, make sure your saddle is not too high (you obviously know this now). Now the non-basics (i.e. things fellow STers may disagree with): if you notice small sores, you need to watch them carefully. If they look like a pimple (i.e. with a white head), that is almost always MRSA (or so my doc says). If so, antibiotics are the sure-fire way to go (cipro works great for me but has tendon rupture issues as known but rare side effects; bactrim DS has been suggested by my doc friends as another alternative). I usually only take the antibiotics if I have a large sore (like you have described) or lots of small ones. Sores are usually gone within a week even if I keep riding. If I have one or 2 small ones, I will lance it myself (i.e. swab the area with alcohol, use a small guage NEW syringe, squeeze out the pus until it is clear, swab the area again with alcohol); needless to say, it is not much fun but it is less painful than feeling like you are riding on a pin cushion for several hours. You can get a script for diabetic syrinces from your doc. If you don’t use sterile techniques, you could really do some harm so it’s your call.
If the sore looks more like a bruise, then it is probably just a pressure sore and should heal up fine without drugs. Just bike on some hills to get out of the saddle more frequently. Make sure your shorts fit tightly. You can even change your saddle from time to time just to change the pressure points.
One final bit of advice: boil ease is your friend! It is just a topical anesthetic that you get at any drug store (generic walgreens is my favorite). I bring the small tube with me on long rides and reapply whenever I have to stop for water. Even if I don’t have a sore, it helps me tolerate the normal saddle discomfort.
Get it sorted by a good dermatologist. You’ll be back in the saddle in no time. To avoid this in future, shower and cleanse the area in question before and after you ride, always ride in clean kit, and use chamois cream.
I used to get them quite regularly and tried all the methods of prevention.
Change out of shorts immediately after a ride - didn’t work
Use good quality chamois cream - didn’t work
Exfoliate the area after a ride - didn’t work
What worked for me was to keep the undercarriage trimmed.
Not sure if it is a known workaround but it worked for me.
Can be saddle sore or a Perianalthrombose, for the first nough said, for the second you should see a proctologist to get some ointment. If its that, I can tell you it takes up to a month to get in the saddle again.
Notsureifserious! I think flickr would pull it very quickly, anyways
Okay, it’s about ready to go, am hoping to run my setup by you guys to make sure everything’s in-line for this to go down safely(as much as possible)…
It’s got a head (red/blood, not white like i was expecting, but has been at the point of ready-to-go for like 15hrs now. I’m not going to force it, am just keeping it moist/warm/epsom-salted and sterile, and gently coaxing it)
I’m all setup for letting this thing rupture in my bathtub (hottest water I can tolerate, water is very very salty w/ sea salt/epsom salts/etc in a very clean tub)
Questions:
Would it be okay to use novacaine if necessary? (the kind you’d put on a sore tooth - it’s an oral preparation, seems it’d be fine for topical?)
Should I be eating right now? The pain is already making me nauseous(sp?), but at the same time I want my body capable here. Have already taken my morning vitC, fish oils, salt/calcium (am wondering if I should take my nighttime potassium/magnesium? Or are these things utterly irrelevant to how this’ll rupture?)
What are my “ambulance-indicators”? I’m only at 99.8 on a very reliable thermometer, have been holding that temp for over a day now (temp never broke 100.4 at anytime past 2wks) The tenderness is still, thankfully, very very localized to teh boil, although I’m presuming there’ll be some spread once it ruptures.
I know to squeeze it from the sides only (not ‘center’ like w/ a pimple); is there anything to know for how to ‘coax’ it once i’m in the tub and it ruptures? I guess I’m figuring to just sit in the hot water, gently get out as much as possible, but not try to ‘force’ the remainder out…my understanding is it’ll just kinda seep out over a couple days?
How to dress it after the rupture and waht to watch for? I’ve been keeping a homemade epsom salt + mupirocin paste on it since this all started (for ‘pull’ / sterile), is the magnesium or drying agents of any benefit / danger once it’s ruptured? For sterility, I’m thinking that ‘cleans’ are done with hydro peroxide then coated w/ mupirocin? (I have pretty much every OTC cleaning agent, vinegar, every type of salt imaginable, etc etc, figure that the problem will be balance btween sterility and rawness
Thanks a ton for the input you guys, think after this nightmare is over I need to be a big boy and get myself some med insurance… this whole ordeal has more than snuffed out any remaining ‘adolescent invincibility’ I had lol, nothing like 2wks of praying you’ll survive to make you feel your mortality (yes I’m aware I’m probably over-worrying here; read just one anecdote of someone dying from a boil, and’ve been shaking since )
