More Nostalgia!

[Mags22]

Can anyone remember people (mostly men) having boils, which were like an enormous lump on the neck or bum, and they had to be lanced. I have no idea what they really were or what caused them,will have to google, but no-one seems to get them now. This was back in late 1940's/50's

[Barsel]

My brother used to get these on his neck, I think they were called carbuncles and Mum used to put 'drawing ointment' on them.

[gness]

About twenty five years ago I used to have to dress one for an elderly neighbour....that was on his bum.....

Oh the life I have led........☺

[Barsel]

gness that would have been a car bum cle :-)

[gness]

☺☺....*&*&^^""!!!!!!!!.....is what he called it.....x

[Sqad]

Yes, i remember them well........carbuncles.....hot poultices, as hot as you could bear them. many were streptococcal infections and after bursting, the active organism was still on the shirt or underpants to reinfect again. Penicillin was available, but the organisms soon became resistant to them. Streptomycin was available but that was used only for tuberculosis.
Then in the late 50's and 60's we had wide spectrum antibiotics and this marked the death of the recurrent boils and carbuncles.

[Mamyalynne]

I often wondered if they were aggravated if not caused by friction of those starched collars they wore.

They always seemed to be in that area.

[gness]

Mmmm...I did tell him not to starch his pants.....he didn't listen....I could tell by the way he walked.....☻

[Mamyalynne]

Reminds me of another bit of nostalgic trivia - my Grandparents were off out to the Music Hall and Grandad got all spruced up but seemingly washed his face in a bowl of water already drawn not knowing Gran had just starched his shirt collars.

Before the first interval he took her hand and through gritted teeth whispered 'Edie, I've had a stroke'.

[gness]

Mamya...that's so similar to the time I was driving with MrG in the passenger seat....we were taking large potted tomato plants to the daughter....the plants were on the floor of the car behind him.

One of the bamboo sticks went under the collar of his shirt...when he tried to move forward he couldn't.....

He was convinced he was having a stroke...I pulled over and was dialing 999 when I saw the stick......☺

[Mamyalynne]

You have to love 'em don't you?

[tonyav]

I remember having a boil on my thigh ( got the scar to prove it ) when I was around 5 or 6 years old, but now I know why, my mom used to much starch on my underpants.

[jno]

Mamya, we are them

[Mosaic]

Could the comparative ease of washing and drying clothes have contributed to the decline? It used to be that 'the shirt' was washed weekly, while detachable collars were cleaned 'as needed'. Many garments were simply not washable, even in the 1950s. Its no wonder boils prevailed.

[Mamyalynne]

We are them ?, I was referring to the men in the preceding stories.

[Zeuhl]

LOL gness

/One of the bamboo sticks went under the collar of his shirt...when he tried to move forward he couldn't.....

He was convinced he was having a stroke...I pulled over and was dialing 999 when I saw the stick..../

You should send that to David Renwick

If he ever writes another OFIG (or similar) he could use that

:-)

[Mags22]

Mamyalynne and Gness - wonderful answers, lol - googled them and they sound pretty awful !

[Peter Pedant]

agree sqad - the boils in the neck were in thick skin and communicated with each other.

and were mainly staph.

Styes another thing we see rarely nowadays.

I think also nutrition must have had an effect.

My uncle in the sixties showed me his pock marked arms and said: in the slums before the war we all used to get boils,,, but now you never see them.....

[starone]

I remember having a boil in my ear and having it lanced with some sort of torture instrument like a pencil sharpener. I screamed the place down. And what about ringworm and being painted with that purple stuff. Bad old days, not good old days.

[Canary42]

I had a boil on my bum as a tiny baby (during WW2) - now have an attractive (!) dimple to show for it.