Symptoms

When gangrene affects your skin, signs and symptoms may include:

• Skin discoloration — ranging from pale to blue, purple, black, bronze or red, depending on the type of gangrene you have
• Swelling
• Blisters
• Sudden, severe pain followed by a feeling of numbness
• A foul-smelling discharge leaking from a sore
• Thin, shiny skin, or skin without hair
• Skin that feels cool or cold to the touch

If you have a type of gangrene that affects tissues beneath the surface of your skin, such as gas gangrene or internal gangrene, you may also have a low-grade fever and generally feel unwell.

If the germs that caused the gangrene spread through your body, septic shock can occur. Signs and symptoms of septic shock include:

• Low blood pressure
• Fever, although some people may have a body temperature lower than the normal 98.6 F (37 C)
• Rapid heart rate
• Lightheadedness
• Shortness of breath
• Confusion

When to see a doctor

Gangrene is a serious condition and needs emergency treatment. Call your doctor right away if you have persistent, unexplained pain in any area of your body along with one or more of the following signs and symptoms:

• Persistent fever
• Skin changes — including discoloration, warmth, swelling, blisters or lesions — that won't go away
• A foul-smelling discharge leaking from a sore
• Sudden pain at the site of a recent surgery or trauma
• Skin that's pale, hard, cold and numb