Skin Infections: ABFM practice questions

7 board-style questions on skin infections in the PulseMD family medicine question bank, written against current guidelines with the reference cited on each question. Two free samples below; the full set with answers, explanations, and spaced review is free to start.

Sample question 1

A 28-year-old man presents with a 3-day history of a rapidly expanding, warm, erythematous, tender area on his right lower leg. He has fever of 38.6C (101.5F) and a 3 cm fluctuant area within the erythema. WBC is 13,500/uL. He has no diabetes or immunosuppression. He has not had recent hospitalization. What is the most appropriate management?

1. Oral cephalexin 500 mg four times daily for 7-10 days only
2. IV vancomycin and hospital admission
3. Warm compresses and observation for 48 hours
4. Incision and drainage of the abscess plus trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole to cover MRSA

Sample question 2

A 45-year-old woman develops osteomyelitis of the tibia 3 weeks after open reduction internal fixation of a fracture. Bone biopsy culture grows methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). The orthopedic surgeon plans to retain the hardware because the fracture is not yet healed. In addition to surgical debridement, which antibiotic regimen is MOST appropriate?

1. IV daptomycin for 4 weeks
2. Oral trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (TMP-SMX) alone for 6 weeks
3. IV vancomycin for 2 weeks followed by oral doxycycline for 2 weeks
4. IV vancomycin for 6 weeks plus rifampin, followed by prolonged oral suppressive therapy

Create a free PulseMD account to answer these, see the explanations, and practice five minutes a day.

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