Boil

An inflamed, pus-filled area of skin, usually an infected hair follicle. A more severe and extensive form of a boil that involves several hair follicles is a carbuncle. The usual cause of a boil is infection with the bacterium. Recurrent boils may occur in people with known or unrecognized diabetes mellitus or with other conditions in which general resistance to infection is impaired. Treatment may be with antibiotic drugs but, if pus is released surgically, the boil will usually heal without antibiotics.