Cellulitis and fever: what to know

Cellulitis is an infection in deeper skin and nearby tissue. The body's inflammatory response may produce fever, chills, tiredness, or a general feeling of illness, alongside a warm, tender, red, swollen area. Fever can have other causes, so it does not establish the diagnosis on its own. A clinician will consider the skin findings, timing, possible wound, and overall condition.

Contact a healthcare service promptly when fever occurs with a new or enlarging red, warm, painful, or swollen patch. Record when symptoms started, drink fluids if you can, and take only medicines suitable for you. If antibiotics are prescribed, use them exactly as directed and arrange review if the skin continues to worsen or you feel more ill.

Go to emergency care for confusion, fainting, difficulty breathing, severe weakness, rapidly spreading redness, severe pain, or a cold or mottled appearance. Fever with these signs may indicate a serious infection requiring hospital treatment. People with diabetes, poor circulation, or reduced immunity should seek advice particularly early.

Ask whether the fever fits the skin findings, whether a wound or fungal infection is the entry point, how to monitor progression, and when a follow-up examination is needed.