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Oozing pus? What color is bad?

A woman getting her wound bandaged by a provider.
Take care of your injury and watch signs of an infection.

Pus is a mix of bacteria and the white blood cells our bodies use to fight infection. It is most often seen in skin infections like pimples, abscesses and surgical incisions.

Most minor wounds heal well if:

  • Cleaned with soap and water.
  • Kept clean and dry.
  • Antibiotic ointment is used.

An incision or wound that’s healing well looks slightly red initially and may seep clear fluid.

“If you start to notice your wound isn’t healing the best or starting to leak fluid, you may need to contact your primary care provider right away,” said Leah Meidl, nurse practitioner with Marshfield Clinic Health System.

chills.

What color pus is bad?

The color of pus can indicate the type of infection it’s caused by. If you notice signs of an infection in a wound, you should contact your primary care provider immediately. Treatment can reduce your risk of serious infection.

  • Green pus can be a sign of a bacterial infection and often has a bad smell.
  • Red or pink pus typically means blood has seeped into the infected area.
  • Yellow pus can be a sign of a bacterial infection like strep or staph.
  • Brown pus is a sign of liver infection.
  • White pus shows that the infection is progressing. This is a good color for pus.

Infographic explaining the different colors of pus

Download Color of Pus Handout

Know when to get serious about pus

An untreated infected wound can lead to a more serious infection. The infection can spread to your bloodstream and deeper tissue. A slow-healing open wound increases your risk for other types of infections.

A wound is more likely to become infected in people with weakened immune systems, diabetes or other chronic medical conditions like kidney, heart and lung disease because their immune systems aren’t strong enough to fight infections.

Schedule an appointment with your doctor if you have a cut, surgical wound, skin bump or boil that’s warm to the touch or red.

“It is best to have your wound evaluated in person if there is any new redness, drainage, or warmth,” Meidl said.

Your provider may drain the area, clean the infected area using sterile tools and prescribe antibiotics.

To help ensure they are prescribing the right antibiotics, your doctor may sample (or ‘culture’) the pus, Meidl said. Large wounds or abscesses may need to be cleaned and drained by a surgeon.

For questions about pus, talk to a Marshfield Clinic Health System provider.

Schedule appointment Message your provider

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6 responses to “Oozing pus? What color is bad?”

  1. Michelle J

    My son was recently in a bad accident and had the bottom part of his leg amputated and reconstructive surgery done on his arm. He's been very stubborn about receiving medical attention and checked himself out of the hospital early. Currently the wound on his leg is crusted over with a very very thick black crust and is now oozing Brown pus. The incision that was me to put the metal plate on his elbow has completely split open with the metal entirely exposed.

  2. Jessica

    I had carpal tunnel surgery a few weeks ago and the incision area was red. When I said something to the surgeon she said it looked fine and to keep it covered for another 2 weeks. It's now redder and when I went to change the bangage gunk couldn't wait to ooze out. I'm also a T1D. My stomach won't stop turning from the site. I'm afraid. Going to call the Dr in the morning

  3. CL

    I had an incision on my neck for sleep Apnea surgery, that at first was taking augmentin for safety concerns. Had to go off it, the side effects were bad. Dr told me to take probiotics. After 18 days of that I developed a infection, Green pus gushed out then blood, then almost clear blood.
    What kept me from getting sicker was the fact that I had been on amoicillian 875mg for a tooth infection. Presently it seems to be healing well. My last dose of meds will be a total of 7 days. Probiotics may be good for gut health, but next time I won't be taking that. Septise is a bad thing that I don't want.

  4. Dave Calderon

    Thank you, this was very helpful. I have a roommate who is in the hospital with a horrible skin infection and I think I may have the same thing. I'm going to go get checked shortly.

  5. Linda Lofton

    Don't worry about a pimple or blackhead or a little bump that oozes a tiny drop of clear liquid and looks normal? I found no mention of basal cell cancer in this article. I found spots next to my ear, on my neck and upper lip, and three doctors said they were nothing. I asked for a biopsy and all four samples came back basal, and all had to be cut again because the first samples did not have clear edges. I think this article ignored an important detail.

    1. Kirsten Shakal, Shine365 Editor

      Thanks for the article suggestion, Linda. I'll share with our writing team the topic of basal cell cancer, which may be better suited as another story.

      -Kirstie

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