Folliculitis or sebaceous glands?

Hey.
Does anyone know if folliculitis can cause those subcutaneous lumps that look more like boils? Or could it be clogged sebaceous glands causing them instead?

Greetings.

I don't have a definitive answer for you, but I dealt with folliculitis on my right thigh and getting rid of the aftermath—those dark spots—was an absolute nightmare.

Those pimple-like bumps under the skin didn't respond to anything; antibiotics, steroids, ointments... nothing worked.
The doctors were guessing wildly at first. They thought it was a massage oil allergy, then a bacterial infection, then ovarian issues, then this or that. I hopped from one dermatologist to another, traveling from Washington, D.C. all the way to Seattle, before finally finding a top-tier specialist in Brooklyn through some friends. 🙏She was blunt with me. She admitted they had only seen a case like mine once before and there was no magic cure—it either clears up on its own or lingers for years (like their one patient who has been dealing with it on her hand for over two decades).
Her advice was to try tanning beds, and honestly, that actually worked.

Just to be clear—I did every allergy test and bacterial swab available, and everything came back negative.

As for the scarring, I managed to clear that up by applying evening primrose oil for six months.

For me, the whole ordeal lasted two years. It just appeared out of nowhere. 🙄

Grace Turner85 said:Hi there.

I don't have a definitive answer for you, but I dealt with folliculitis on my right thigh and it was a nightmare to get rid of—especially the dark spots left behind.

Those pimple-like bumps under the skin didn't respond to anything; antibiotics, steroids, ointments... nothing.
The doctors were guessing at first—maybe a massage oil allergy, then bacterial inflammation, then ovarian issues, then this, then that... I saw several dermatologists from Washington, D.C. all the way to San Francisco before finally getting referred through friends to an amazing specialist in Brooklyn 🙏 who was blunt with me. She admitted they'd only seen a case like mine once before and said there's no magic fix—it either clears up on its own or sticks around for years (like their one patient who's had it on her hand for over 20 years).
She suggested trying a tanning bed, and honestly, that actually worked.

Just to be clear—I did all the allergy tests and bacterial swabs, and everything came back negative.

As for the scarring, I cleared it up by using evening primrose oil for about six months.

For me, the whole thing lasted two years. It just showed up out of nowhere... 🙄

My dermatologist says it's definitely folliculitis, so she put me on a cream and some antibiotics. If it gets worse or if new bumps pop up, I'll go back to the clinic to get swabs done for bacterial typing, just in case. I'll keep your doctor in Brooklyn in mind.

My primary care physician diagnosed me immediately—folliculitis, no doubt about it. She prescribed an antibiotic (I can't recall which one specifically) aimed at treating soft tissue inflammation, but frankly, nothing changed. That’s why she sent me for swabs, which came back COMPLETELY sterile; there wasn't a single bacterium to be found.

That is precisely my point...
They have nothing to fight against because they don't even know the cause.

So, they cycled me through corticosteroids, then some kind of antifungal treatments, then light therapy... And absolutely nothing worked!!!

Except for tanning beds and St. John's Wort. Not to mention my own exhaustion and stubbornness, obviously...