Conclusions

Well hopefully that's the end of my Efudix treatment. My appearance is now almost back to normal and anyone who doesn't know me would never realise how bad I looked two weeks ago. If you can compare the picture taken on day 22 with that on day 35 you can see how great the transformation is.

My main conclusion about the treatment is that, in my case, it was not anything as bad as I had expected. Having said this my appearance became pretty bad but I probably only had two or thee days of major discomfort, and I do mean discomfort and not pain. Severe irritation is probably a better way of describing it. At no time during the period did I have to take pain killers and even the itching and tenderness of the skin was never so severe that I had to contact my doctor.

At the beginning of my blog I suggested that it may have been a mistake doing so much research on the internet as I was getting the impression that the treatment would be very unpleasant. I hope that anyone who might stumble on this account of my experience with Efudix will be slightly reassured that the treatment could well be not as bad a it looks.

All the Best
Alan

Day 35

Day 14 Recovery.

Well as you can see my skin is now back to almost normal. There is still a little extra redness where the Efudix cream was applied but not so much that it is really noticeable.
It is now 5 weeks since the start of my treatment so this is the last of the daily photos I am going to post. In the next couple of days I will post my conclusions on the treatment.

Day 34

Day13 Recovery

I am almost back to normal now.  Still a little redness in the face but not too much. I will make my last daily post on this blog tomorrow which will be 5 weeks since the commencement of my treatment.

Day 33

Day 12 Recovery

Pictures are perhaps getting a little boring so I thought I would have the little dog join me again today.
As you can see the scabs have now almost disappeared and I am once again getting to look a bit more normal!

Day 32

Day 11 Recovery

Another daily improvement. Still a little red but the scabs have almost disappeared and the dryness is improving.

Day 31

Day 10 Recovery

As you can see getting better by the day. Skin is still very dry and a little flaky, but I'm using plenty of moisturiser so hope for more improvement soon.

Day 30

Day 9 Recovery

A further improvement today. The scabs under my eyes are much better without the Nystaform ointment, but my forehead does not appear to be improving as much as before, it is still very dry and flaky so I have given just this part of my face another application.

Day 29

Day 8 Recovery

Much better today. I didn't use any more of the ointment yesterday as I was doing ok without it. I am now just going to use the E45 cream and moisturiser. Most of the scabbing under my right eye has now gone and that under my left eye seems to be healing nicely. What a difference a week makes I now don't look too bad at all and feel perfectly ok.

Day 28

Day 7 Recovery

Still some redness but getting better by the day. I have not yet applied the ointment and am going to leave it for a bit and just apply some E45 cream as I am going out shortly. My doctor suggested the ointment be used for 7 to 10 days but the leaflet that came with the medication states it should be used for no more than 7 days so I don't think  will use it any more after today. It does now appear to be aggravating the scabs under my eyes. As it softens them they start to bleed and once dried out new scabs form.

Day 27

Day 6 Recovery

This picture was taken in the morning before application of the ointment. As you can see my face is still quite red but the main problem is the scabbing under my eyes. This becomes even more noticeable after ointment application as the scabs soften and ooze, at this stage they look quite disgusting. If anyone uses the Nystaform ointment I suggest they use it at a time when they don't have to meet people for several hours. Another couple of tips are use old pillowcases and a pillow protector as at night time there is a tendency for your face to bleed a little and also have a short haircut before the Efudix treatment is commenced as you wont feel like going to the barbers looking as bad as you surely will do.

Day 26

Day 5 Recovery.

It may not appear so from this picture but I am getting a lot better. Taken about 10 minutes after the ointment was applied it has exaggerated the redness, this will last for a few hours. The itching sensation is a lot better now, it was always worst in the area at the sides of my nose and the scabs here have now largely disappeared. The main trouble spots are now under my eyes  where is still a little swollen.

Day 25

Day 4 Recovery

I woke up this morning and when I looked in the mirror I looked like a road crash victim, my face was covered in blood. The various scabs around my face are loosening and when they become detached they tend to bleed a little. This picture was taken about 5 hours after this morning's ointment application and although I still look pretty gross there is a definite improvement although my skin now feels very tender.

Day 24

Day 3 Recovery

Today's picture is taken in the morning before the first application of the ointment. As you can see my forehead is slowly getting better. The most noticeable problem is what looks, and feels like severe bruising on my cheeks and around my eyes. It is quite sore when applying the ointment, being quite greasy it is not as smooth to rub into the skin as a cream and is painful over the tender bruised areas. Also as the scabs break down they become very hard and it almost feels as if little shards of glass are being rubbed over the tender skin underneath. After application my face becomes very itchy and there is a great temptation to rub it slightly. This however only aggravates the itching and I try as far as possible not to touch my face for half an hour or so after application.

Day 23

Recovery Day 2

Still look pretty awful don't I, but why am I looking so happy you may ask. Well I AM A GRAND DAD!!! I now have a lovely little grand daughter, Amelia Rose, born 11.23 last night.

Back to my treatment, although it doesn't seem so important now. This picture was taken shortly after the Nystaform ointment had been applied. as you can my skin is very shiny and it remains greasy for several hours after application. I constantly require a tissue to wipe my fingers on if I happen to touch my face. It does work though and after 4 or 5 hours my face looks a lot better until it completely dries out and becomes very gritty and tender just before the next application is due.

Day 22

Day 1 Recovery.

Very pleased to say that I have now discontinued use of the Efudix cream and started the recovery process.
Last night was my worst so far, I woke up in the night with my face throbbing and feeling very hot. This morning I am very swollen around the eyes and the bridge of my nose appears to be about twice its normal width.
I have now been given Nystaform-HC ointment the active ingredients of which are chlorhexidine acetate 1% and hydrocortosone 1%. I was given the option of cream or ointment. I was told that the ointment would look worse as it was greasy and made the skin look shiny, but was slightly more effective. The cream was more readily absorbed. As I felt I couldn't look much worse than I do at the moment I decided on the ointment. On first applying the ointment I can see what the doctor meant. It exaggerates the yellowness of the scabs and does make my face look unpleasantly shiny. After a few hours it has softened up the hard crusty scabs and they are coming away slightly when dabbed with a tissue, they will also stain a pillow or clothing in which they come into contact so I will have to be careful.

Day 21

Well today although I don't look it I am feeling a bit better. Yesterday morning apart from the irritation I was also feeling a little unwell, but throughout the day I started feeling much better and in the afternoon, when the itching is usually at it's worst, I was hardly bothered at all by it. My sleep last night was disturbed again, but not this time by itching but by a throbbing in my upper cheeks and around my eyes where this morning there appears to be quite a bit of swelling, hence the odd look of my eyes in the photo.
Using the Efudix is an odd sensation. Whereas normally if you have a sore on your skin you apply a cream to sooth it and hopefully make it better, but with the Efudix when it is applied it just aggravates the sore and you start looking worse than you did before. I just have to believe in the long term benefit. Hopefully tonight's application will be the last and tomorrow I can start on the next stage.

Day 20

As you can perhaps tell from the photo I am not very happy today. For the first time I had a bit of a disturbed night. The unpleasant scabs on my face are weeping and bleeding slightly but as they dry out throughout the day they start flaking off.
Yesterday afternoon was quite uncomfortable as my face was constantly itching, but of course it is so tender that it cannot be scratched. The only slight relief is by gently pressing a hand over the irritated area. My cheeks and around my eyes are now getting a bit swollen, as if bruises are developing under the scabs. Only two days to go before I see the doctor on Monday so lets hope that will be the end of the Efudix stage.

Day 19

I woke up this morning, looked in the mirror and I looked absolutely disgusting.  The scabs around my nose and on my cheeks and forehead are now a horrible yellow colour and are oozing and bleeding slightly. I knocked the top off the one on my right cheek as I was applying the cream and that also started to bleed a bit.
Yesterday was probably the most uncomfortable day so far, my face was very itchy most of the afternoon, but it did settle down a bit after the second application of cream. Still slept ok though and although uncomfortable my face is not particularly painful. I'll just have to see what the next couple of days are like before I have to see the doctor again on Monday.

Day 18

Sorry about this but I thought I would treat you to a close up today.  As you can see I am getting more ghastly looking by the day. The scabs under my right eye, on my forehead and around my nose are getting more pronounced and unsightly. My skin is becoming very dry and gritty and as I mentioned before changing facial expressions is a little  painful, but obviously not so painful that I remember not to do it!

Day 17

Very red now and my face is quite tender. Scabs have formed around my nose, on my right cheek and beside my left eye. My skin is itchy and uncomfortable most of the time now, but I have still had no trouble sleeping. I may be imagining it but my skin feels most uncomfortable several hours after the application of the cream. If I apply it at about 7.30am it is most bothersome mid afternoon.

Day 16

My face is getting more sore now, quite tender to touch and the skin is drying out and crusting in places. It is uncomfortable to wrinkle my forehead so for example glancing at the clock above my computer I have to move my whole head rather than just my eyes. There is also a rather unsightly scab formed on my right cheekbone. However providing I keep my facial movements to a minimum I can remain reasonably comfortable and it has still not caused me any problems sleeping.

Day 15

Two weeks of treatment over now. It has not so far been as bad as I expected, but I am not getting complacent, I am expecting things to get progressively worse this week.
My skin is now feeling very dry and scaly especially on my forehead and around my nose, and it does now sting a little as the cream is applied.
I do appear very red in these photographs, but these are obviously taken from quite close and in good light. When I am out I don't so far think anyone is taking too much notice of me. I will invariably wear a large brimmed hat when walking the dogs etc. and I think people are more inclined to notice a bloke in a daft hat than a bloke with a very red face!
As I have had so little real discomfort so far I hope that this is because I am lucky rather than that the process is acting slower than expected. When I go to see the doctor next Monday I am wanting him to say I can discontinue using the cream and start on the healing process, rather than having to continue for a fourth week.

Day 14

I have a visitor staying with me at the moment so thought I would have her join me for today's picture. It will make a change from just looking at the rather unpleasant pictures of me.
As for my treatment, nothing much to report today.

Day 13

It's 7.30am and this picture was taken about 10 minutes after applying the cream so I am probably at my reddest state, which is pretty red. Last night I woke up at about 3.00 and my forehead felt very hot, I did manage to get to sleep again and it didn't feel so bad this morning. When applying the cream my skin is now feeling quite gritty, especially on my forehead and around the sides of my nose. I have also developed two quite tender little sores at either side of my mouth although this is not an area where I use the cream, I expect there must be some transfer as I touch my face, I will have to be more careful. All in all things are not quite as bad as I thought they might be at this stage and could at the moment only be described as slightly uncomfortable.

Day 12

The red blotches on my face are starting to join up now.  Yesterday afternoon it did get a little bit uncomfortable. It was itching quite badly for a while. I seemed to settle down in the evening after the second Efudix application, no doubt helped by the glass (or two!) of red wine I had, purely for medicinal purposes of course. Had a good nights sleep and it is still not too bad this morning.

Day 11

Not a pretty sight! As you can see the redness is spreading and becoming more noticable and my forehead  is becoming a bit crusty. I am still however feeling very little discomfort, at the moment it looks far worse than it feels. I have no trouble sleeping and for much of the day I can forget all about it. I know things will get worse shortly but I am looking on every day when I am not troubled too much as a bonus.

Day 10

Not a great deal to report today so I thought I would give you another doggie picture. I always look happier when I am with a little dog! As you can see I am getting redder by the day and it has also started to itch a bit more but not too troublesome at the moment. I am expecting the third week of application to be the worst. I go and see the doctor on the 28th May to see if I can discontinue using the cream and start the recovery stage, or whether I have to continue using the cream for a forth week.

Day 9

Getting redder by the day now, but still from a distance, especially with a hat on, I look reasonably ok so not frightening the children yet!  I am now constantly aware that something is happening to my facial skin, but still causing me only mild discomfort. The effects are speeding up though so am wondering how I will feel by the end of week two.

Day 8

Thought I would do a closer picture today. The redness is definitely noticeable now and the contrast between the treated upper half of my face and the untreated lower half is quite noticeable. The picture was taken just after this morning's application of Efudix and the redness does appear to diminish a bit throughout the day, it is possibly also slightly exaggerated by the camera flash. From several feet away I don't look too bad and am not yet too self conscious of my appearance. I am still suffering very little discomfort although I am now constantly aware that something is happening to my skin. The easiest way to describe it is that it feels like I have a touch of sunburn.

Day 7

My face does appear to be a little redder this morning, although this could be down to a certain amount of overindulgence whilst celebrating John's birthday yesterday.
Seriously though I don't notice a great deal of difference today. Still no pain or real discomfort. The skin does get redder immediately after application of the cream but then fades a bit during the day. As all the pictures are a bit boring I thought I would get little Tess to join me today.

Day 6
I have taken the criticism on board and made an effort to look more cheerful in today's photo. I am not sure how well it has worked though, it is difficult to look natural as you are watching the self timer on the camera count down. I might just look like a grinning idiot.
Anyway, back to my treatment. I have definitely noticed a slight difference today. I could feel the cream as I applied it this morning, it was not painful, or even uncomfortable but I definitely felt it tingling as I applied it. I have also noticed the red blemishes, particularly on my forehead becoming more noticeable and they have started to itch slightly.

 After putting this blog on line yesterday the main comments I got were about how miserable I looked! So I thought I would post a few pics to show that I am really quite a cheerful soul. I have also put a little information about myself in my profile should anyone who doesn't know me stumble across this blog.

Monday 7th May 2012
Day 1

After my weeks holiday in Malta it's finally time to start my Efudix treatment. I am actually at the moment quite looking forward to getting on with it, the sooner I start the sooner it is finished. This perhaps is one occasion where too much research on the Internet is a bad thing.  the instruction leaflet with the medication suggests there might be some discomfort and the skin may look worse before it starts getting better, but once you start looking up peoples experiences it sounds as if it could be quite unpleasant, but it has got to be done so I will just have to get on with it.


Day 2

Well all a bit of an anticlimax really. No noticeable effects so far at all. I don't suppose I was really expecting anything different. From what I have read nothing much happens until about a week into the treatment.

Day 3

Still no change, my face was quite coloured anyway after my weeks holiday in the sun.










Day 4

I think I am getting less red, probably my sun tan wearing off. I am beginning to feel a bit of a fraud, I am taking time off work as I have to keep out of the sun but so far we have seen hardly any sun since I got home, pleanty of rain though!









Day 5

The start of day 5 and still no noticable difference in my appearance. I am beginning to notice some slight changes though. My skin seems to be a bit more tender and I am feeling a slight itchiness, but this could just be that I am waiting for something to happen. I must try not to look so serious in the photos!