Symptom guide · Pioneer Physicians
Rash Treatment and Skin Infection Care in Bolingbrook, IL
Many rashes come from an irritant, an allergy or a virus, and mild ones often improve with home care. Call 911 for a rash with purple, bruise-like spots, trouble breathing, a swollen face or throat, or skin that blisters and peels. For rash treatment in Bolingbrook, IL, Pioneer Physicians Urgent Care is open every day, 8 AM to 8 PM, and walk-ins are welcome.
- Open 7 days, 8 AM to 8 PM
- Walk-ins welcome
- X-ray and rapid tests on site
- Kids and adults
- Medicare and Medicaid plans accepted
Common causes of a rash
Most rashes are inflamed skin from something it touched, an allergy or a passing virus. The usual causes are:
- Contact dermatitis: an itchy rash where skin touched soap, fragrance, nickel, latex or poison ivy, often 1 to 2 days later
- Eczema: dry, itchy patches that may scale, more common in people with allergies or asthma
- Hives: raised, itchy welts that shift around and rarely last more than 48 hours in one spot
- Viral rashes: small pink spots on the chest and belly of a child with a cold or fever
- Heat rash, ringworm and other fungal infections, insect bites, and reactions to medicines
Skin infections that need treatment
Infected skin usually looks red, swollen, warm and painful, and it gets worse instead of better.
Cellulitis
Cellulitis is a deeper skin infection that usually starts at a crack, cut, bite or scrape. MedlinePlus lists redness that keeps growing, warmth, pain and sometimes fever with chills. Antibiotics by mouth for 7 to 10 days usually clear it, but a very high fever, vomiting that won’t stop, or infection around the eye can mean a hospital stay.
Impetigo
Impetigo is a surface infection most common in children. Red sores blister, ooze and dry into a honey-colored crust, usually on the face, arms or legs. Scratching spreads it to new spots, and sharing towels or razors spreads it to other people. Treatment is usually an antibiotic cream, or pills for a severe case.
Boils and MRSA
Most staph skin infections, including MRSA, show up as a bump that may be red, swollen, painful, warm or full of pus, the CDC says, and people sometimes mistake them for spider bites. Don’t pick at or pop the bump. Cover it with a clean, dry bandage and see a provider, especially if you have a fever or it isn’t better within 48 hours. If a boil may need draining, call (630) 914-5373 to ask whether that can be done here.
What we can help with today
- Fever
- Widespread pink or red rash with fever in a child who is alert and drinking
- Breathing and swelling
- Itchy hives on the skin with normal breathing
- Red, warm skin
- A warm, swollen, red patch that is spreading
- Blisters
- A painful band of blisters on one side of the body
- Near the eye
- A mild eyelid rash after trying a new makeup or cream
- After a new medicine
- An itchy rash with no other symptoms
Rashes in babies and children
Most childhood rashes are viral and fade on their own, but the American Academy of Pediatrics says every widespread rash with a fever needs to be seen. A baby younger than 3 months with a temperature of 100.4°F or higher needs a doctor right away, as our fever page explains.
Hand, foot and mouth disease, common before age 5, brings fever, painful mouth sores and red spots on the palms and soles; watch that your child keeps drinking. Roseola causes a rash that shows up after a high fever breaks. Fifth disease leaves a bright “slapped cheek” rash.
Scarlet fever comes from the same bacteria as strep throat. Its rash starts on the neck and chest, feels like sandpaper and often comes with a sore throat and a red “strawberry” tongue. A rapid strep test during the visit can confirm it; see our strep throat page. Our pediatric urgent care sees infants, children and teens.
Measles, shingles and other contagious rashes
Measles begins 7 to 14 days after exposure with a high fever, cough, runny nose and red, watery eyes. The CDC says the rash follows 3 to 5 days later as flat red spots at the hairline that spread downward. If you think you or your child has measles, call (630) 914-5373 before you come in.
Shingles is the chickenpox virus returning years later. Pain or tingling on one side of the body comes first, then a band of blisters that clears in 2 to 4 weeks. MedlinePlus says antivirals work best started within 72 hours of the first pain, and shingles near the eye needs emergency care. Until the sores crust, stay away from anyone who never had chickenpox or the vaccine, especially pregnant women.
We do not give childhood vaccinations. Routine shots for children come from your child’s doctor or the Will County Health Department or DuPage County Health Department.
Get a rash checked in Bolingbrook today
Walk in any day for an exam and a treatment plan, or save your spot online; call 911 first for trouble breathing or purple spots with fever.
Tick bites and the Lyme disease rash
Deer ticks carrying Lyme disease have been found in Illinois, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health, and a red rash at the bite appears in about 70 to 80 percent of cases. The CDC says it usually starts 3 to 30 days after the bite, grows over several days and rarely itches or hurts. It isn’t always a bull’s-eye.
A small red bump in the first 72 hours that stays under 2 inches and fades within days is usually a reaction to the tick’s saliva. For a rash that keeps growing, or a fever after a tick bite, see a provider and mention the bite.
How to care for a rash at home
Many mild rashes improve with gentle skin care and by avoiding what irritated them. MedlinePlus suggests:
- Wash with a gentle cleanser and warm, not hot, water, then pat dry
- Stop any soap, lotion or makeup you started recently
- Don’t scrub or scratch, and let the rash air out
- Use calamine lotion on poison ivy, or 1% hydrocortisone cream, sold without a prescription, on itchy patches
- Moisturize eczema; an oatmeal bath product or an antihistamine by mouth may ease itching
- If you think a prescription caused the rash, call the prescriber before you stop taking it
After contact with poison ivy, oak or sumac
CDC workplace safety guidance says to rinse the skin right away with soap and plenty of water. Blister fluid does not spread the rash. Never burn these plants, because the smoke can cause serious breathing problems.
When a rash should be checked today
See a provider the same day when a rash looks infected, keeps spreading or comes with other symptoms, such as:
- Fever with a rash, or a rash with joint pain or a sore throat
- Redness, warmth or swelling that is spreading, red streaks, or pus
- Honey-colored crusts, or large blisters on the skin
- A painful, blistering rash on one side of the body
- A rash that began after a new medicine or a tick bite
- A rash that gets worse despite home care
A new rash or sore after sex
Any new sore or rash after sex is worth a visit. The CDC says syphilis can cause a rough, reddish rash on the palms or soles, and it is curable with the right antibiotics. We offer confidential testing for common STIs.
Rash treatment at Pioneer Physicians in Bolingbrook
Walk in any day with no appointment, or save your spot online. A provider examines the rash and asks when it started, what touched your skin, which medicines you take, and about any tick bites or recent travel. Bring any new product you suspect.
A rash with a sore throat or fever may call for a rapid strep test, which is done during the visit. If blood work would help, blood is drawn here and sent to an outside lab; our lab testing page explains what is tested on site and what is sent out.
Treatment depends on the cause. It may be a prescription cream, an antibiotic for a skin infection, an antiviral for shingles, or a plan for avoiding a trigger.
The Pioneer walk-in visit
How a visit works
- Step 1Walk in or save your spot
No appointment needed. You can also save your spot online before you leave home.
- Step 2Check in
Bring a photo ID, your insurance card and a list of the medicines you take.
- Step 3See a provider
Get examined, with X-ray and rapid tests on site when you need them.
- Step 4Leave with a plan
You go home with a care plan and clear next steps.
Why families in Bolingbrook choose Pioneer
Walk-in care that fits real life
Open 7 days a week
8 AM to 8 PM, weekends included, so a Saturday sore throat does not have to wait until Monday.
X-ray and tests on site
X-ray every day we are open, plus rapid strep, flu and COVID tests, urinalysis and EKG.
Care for kids and adults
From infants through the teen years, and adults of every age, in one clinic.
Insurance and self-pay
Aetna, BCBS of Illinois, Cigna, Humana, Medicare, Illinois Medicaid plans and UnitedHealthcare. Call to confirm your plan.
Questions and answers
Questions we hear often
Still not sure? Call (630) 914-5373 and we will help you decide.
When should I worry about a rash?
Call 911 for a rash with purple or bruise-like spots, trouble breathing, a swollen face or throat, blistering and peeling skin, or a stiff neck with fever. A rash with fever, spreading redness or pus, or one that began after a new medicine, should be checked the same day. A mild, itchy rash in someone who feels well can usually start with home care.
Can urgent care treat a skin infection?
Yes. We examine the skin and can start treatment the same day. MedlinePlus says cellulitis is usually treated with antibiotics by mouth, and impetigo with an antibiotic cream. If a boil may need draining, call (630) 914-5373 first to ask whether that can be done here.
Is my child’s rash contagious?
It depends on the cause. Impetigo, hand, foot and mouth disease, chickenpox, measles and scarlet fever spread to other people. Eczema, hives, heat rash and poison ivy do not. If you suspect measles, call before you come in. Ask the provider when your child can return to school or child care.
What should I do after a tick bite?
Remove the tick right away. The Illinois Department of Public Health advises gripping it with tweezers close to the skin and pulling straight out, without twisting, burning it or covering it with petroleum jelly. Watch the spot for about a month, since the CDC says a Lyme rash can appear 3 to 30 days after the bite, and see a provider if a rash grows or a fever starts.
What does a shingles rash look like?
A shingles rash is usually a band of blisters on one side of the body. Pain or tingling in that spot often comes first, and the blisters clear in 2 to 4 weeks. MedlinePlus says antivirals work best started within 72 hours of the first pain, so get it checked soon, and shingles near the eye needs emergency care. Until the sores crust, stay away from anyone who never had chickenpox or the vaccine.
Do you take my insurance for a rash visit?
We accept Aetna, Cigna, Medicare, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois, Illinois Medicaid plans (HFS, Meridian, CountyCare, Molina and YouthCare), UnitedHealthcare and Humana. Call (630) 914-5373 to confirm your specific plan. Self-pay is available too. The cost is the visit plus any tests you need, so call for current self-pay pricing.
Sources for this page
- Rashes. MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine.
- Cellulitis. MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine.
- Shingles. MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine.
- About Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
- Measles Symptoms and Complications. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
- Lyme Disease. Illinois Department of Public Health.
- Rash or Redness: Widespread. American Academy of Pediatrics (HealthyChildren.org).
- Common Skin Rashes in Children. American Family Physician (American Academy of Family Physicians).