One more reason to never, ever pop your zits with foreign objects — you could develop a blood-crusted, oozy lesion that most accurately resembles a mutilated third lip. At least, that’s what happened to one 23-year-old man when he tried to drain a pimple with his woodworking knife and subsequently developed a rare fungal infection.
According to a study published in the Journal of Emergency Medicine, the man decided to use his woodworking blade to pop a pesky zit under his lip and began developing an unsightly lesion on the spot. The man let it fester for seven months (seven months!) before reporting to the hospital, by that time the lesion developing to roughly the same size as his lower lip.
We imagine it took doctors a little while to come to terms with the fact the man waited 7 months to get checked out. Then, as the study reported, they were baffled by what they found— a fungal infection called blastomycosis, which is most commonly found in moist soil and in decomposing wood and leaves around the Great Lakes. Ohio, and Mississippi River valleys
According to the Centers for Disease Control, people typically get blastomycosis by “breathing in the microscopic fungal spores from the air.” This particular case is one of reportedly only 50 medically-reported cases of the infection being spread via “cutaneous inoculation,” or through contact with traumatized skin. (Here are 5 reasons you’re still getting acne as a grown man.)
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Lesson learned— there’s a right way to pop your zits, and there’s a very, very wrong way. Although it’s rare for this particular disease to happen, other long-term effects of unnecessary pimple-popping can lead to acne scars and make your skin susceptible to other infections. In short, it’s just not worth the squeeze. Instead, try out these expert-approved methods for getting rid of pesky skin problems.