Hey Alt, I don't want to frighten you but my mother had an almost identical/ similar looking rash on her ankle in 2010, her GP prescribed a cream for the burning rash. The pain became so intense and rash so scary looking dad took her to the local hospital and fortunately a young on the ball doctor drained some fluid off it for testing and was able to confirm septic arthritis. She was within hours en-route by ambulance to a major hospital an hour away in the Port city for an emergency operation that day. Had they not operated then they said she could well have lost her foot.

While the procedure and the draining of the fluid in itself went well, when dad took her back to the Port hospital for removal of the stitches some 8 days later they said she had developed an infection and she needed to be admitted again to be treated with intravenous antibiotics. Despite having her medical chart to hand the treating doctor (and later the nurses) failed to note her clearly marked allergies and she was prescribed an antibiotic (administered to her under a different name and also recorded on the medical chart with the different brand name) which none of us had heard of before. She was in for less than 24 hours, the IV took 6 hours to run through and then discharged. This was in the face of us saying she looked unwell.

Within 24 hours we had her back at emergency, this time at yet another hospital and because of her then developed neurological symptoms it took them days to realise that the antibiotic had stripped her insides and sent her loopy. We very nearly lost her. In all she spent 10 weeks back n forth to the local hospital and 2 major hospitals here in the city, staying at mine or my sisters house while poor old dad trekked back n forth between their home, our homes and visiting her. It was a terrible time and very frightening.

ALT, I'm only sharing all this so you can take on board that maybe, just maybe, rather than waiting until someone answers the dang telephone it might be worth your while to get off to an A&E department or Emergency department (whatever they call it in your part of the world) and have it investigated.

I can tell you we never suspected septic arthritis, in fact I'd never heard of it and my mother and sister who are both highly qualified and capable nurses (though mum obviously retired) certainly didn't recognise it. To this day we are so glad that it was only because it looked so angry and she was in so much pain that dad insisted on taking her to the local A&E so as to put his mind at ease. It took us all by surprise and although the aftermath was quite terrifying, particularly when she developed all these strange neurological symptoms as a result of the poisoning, had dad not acted in the first place she would have lost her foot. It was highly unfortunate she developed further infection and allergic to the administered antibiotic. A lesson to all of us, now, for all medications prescribed to any of us, we know to ask for any other names it may be known as including generic brands.

Feel better soon and truly, I do not want to frighten you, I just want you to be sure you get it checked out and rule out the possibility. PLEASE!!