Definition- What is a bump under the skin?
A bump is basically a bulge. If you call it a bulge under the skin, you express that this bulge is closed and that there is no open skin above it. This bulge can be of different nature depending on what the cause of the bulge under the skin is. For example, the bulge can consist of a fluid accumulation, which can be pus, blood or free tissue fluid. Such a bump can also consist of subcutaneous fatty tissue or the skin itself.
Causes
Causes for a bump under the skin can be very different. The typical bump occurs when you bump into something, such as your forehead. The tissue is injured by the impact, and there may also be bleeding under the skin.
The body sends cells to the affected area to heal the injuries. Therefore a bump occurs. A pimple, which occurs for example when a gland outlet at a hair root is blocked, can also look like a bump.
Often this gland outlet becomes inflamed and then turns red and painful. If the inflammation is severe, a real pustule can develop, which also looks like a lump. This is called an abscess. New formations of the skin or subcutaneous fatty tissue can also form a lump.
Lipoma
A lipoma is a benign new formation of fat cells in the subcutaneous fatty tissue. It is therefore a tumour of the fat tissue cells. In contrast to the much rarer liposarcoma, a lipoma is a benign tumour.
This means that new cells are formed at a certain location, but this tumour does not affect the entire body and it does not spread to other parts of the body. A lipoma does not necessarily have to be treated, but it can be removed for aesthetic reasons. It is also possible that the lipoma presses on structures such as nerves under the skin or causes soreness if it is located in an unfavorable place. In this case removal is also advisable.
Abscess
An abscess is a cavity of pus that accumulates in a place where there was no cavity before. It is usually caused by an inflammation that virtually “eats” its own cavity under the skin. The body sends inflammatory cells to the abscess to fight the infection.
The collection of inflammatory cells and infectious material forms the pus. Larger accumulations of pus can look like a bulge under the skin. An abscess usually needs to be opened to allow the pus to drain away. Only then can the focus of inflammation be removed and the affected area healed in peace.
Tumor
A tumour is a swelling in the broadest sense. This means that a bump under the skin is always also called a tumour. In most cases, however, the colloquial use of the term tumour refers to a new formation of tissue.
In these new formations, a distinction is made between benign and malignant tumours. Benign tumours such as lipoma (from fat cells), fibroma (from connective tissue), haemangioma (also called haemangioma) or a pigment nevus (liver spot) are harmless, but can form a bulge due to excessive cell regeneration, which can be mechanically or aesthetically disturbing. Malignant tumours are liposarcomas (from fat cells), haemangiosarcomas (from the smallest blood vessels) and various types of dark skin cancer (melanomas).