Chelsea Delgado was obsessed with having perfect skin.
As an influencer and self-confessed skincare junkie, the 33-year-old used to spend hours poring over her complexion and any imperfections.
When a small bump popped up on her nose, she was powerless to resist the temptation to pop it.
She was oblivious to the fact that in doing so, she naively waded into a dermatological danger zone known as the ‘triangle of death’.
It’s the area which spans from the bridge of your nose to the corners of your mouth and tampering with it can put you at risk for a serious medical emergency.
Picking or bursting a pimple that crops up in this area can put you at risk of severe infection or Cavernous Sinus Thrombosis – a blood clot in the brain’s venous sinus that could lead to a stroke or meningitis if untreated.
‘I woke up the next morning and my nose – up to the corner of my eye – was completely swollen,’ Delgado said.
Not only was her face swollen, but the inflammation had spread to another pimple.
Influencer Chelsea Delgado recently had a painful and frightening experience with the ‘triangle of death’
Delgado ended up with a swollen nose and eyes after popping a pimple on her nose
Delgado was alarmed but decided to give it a day to see if the swelling would go down. It only got worse.
The pimples on her nose became filled with pus, and her nose was even more swollen, all the way to her eyes.
‘One of my eyes looked smaller than the other because it was so swollen, it was starting to put pressure on my eyes,’ Delgado told the Daily Mail.
She also described a ‘throbbing’ feeling on the tip of her nose, where the popped pimples had been.
Because her face had continued to swell, she rushed herself to the doctor, where she was given a seven-day course of antibiotics.
It was there that she finally realized what had happened to her.
She was stunned, as many are, to learn that such a danger zone existed.
According to Texas-based, board-certified plastic surgeon Dr Frank Agullo, it’s a risk everyone should be aware of.
‘Normally, veins have valves that prevent blood from flowing backward into different regions,’ Agullo explained to the Daily Mail.
The ‘triangle of death’ extends from the bridge of your nose to the corners of your mouth
‘I woke up the next morning and my nose, up to, like, the corner of my eye was completely swollen,’ Delgado told the Daily Mail
‘However, veins in the region just behind the triangle of death lack valves, so when a person pops a zit and causes an infection deep within the skin, bacteria can travel up into the venous system, eventually into the brain’s cavernous sinus, leading to [further] infection.’
The plastic surgeon said that while millions of people around the world pop pimples without having any problems, there is still a small risk.
According to Texas-based, board-certified plastic surgeon Dr Frank Agullo, the ‘triangle of death’ is certainly not an ‘urban myth’
‘The risks of infection spreading into the sinus region, where blood flows back to the brain, are low but come with significant danger if they happen,’ the doctor said.
He shared that infections that cause Cavernous Sinus Thrombosis usually occur in only 0.2 to 0.5 per 100,000 people each year in the United States.
‘Doctors estimate mortality for infection at this level ran as high as 100 percent before antibiotics were widely used.
‘And despite treatments that work today, the disease remains a medical emergency that leads to stroke, blindness or meningitis if symptoms go undetected and untreated,’ Agullo told the Daily Mail.
‘Most cases now come from major sinus infections or dental abscesses, not just a single zit.’
Thankfully, Delgado was able to avoid some more serious complications – but the situation still scared her.
‘I was panicking, wondering if I was going to have a brain issue,’ she recalled.
The dots on her nose became filled with pus, and her nose was even more swollen, all the way to her eyes
Because her face had continued to swell, she rushed herself to the doctor, where she was given a seven-day course of antibiotics to be taken twice daily
Luckily, her doctor told her that because she doesn’t have any pre-existing conditions and she had started antibiotics quickly, everything should be okay.
‘Lesson learned,’ Delgado said. ‘I even saw a little pimple coming up above my lip, and I was like, “I’m not touching that.”‘
Delgado said while the pain and swelling went away after three days, she is still currently left with oozing scabs from the picked pimples and is finishing up her course of antibiotics.
The influencer also shared a piece of her experience in a TikTok video posted to her page in the aftermath. She received dozens of messages from people who have had the same experience – or worse – with the triangle of death.
‘A lot of people said that when it happened to them or their partner, that it would turn into a staph infection,’ she told the Daily Mail. ‘People were in the hospital for weeks on end.
‘Just those little innocent ones, if it’s in that zone, you never know what you’re going to wake up to.
‘In a sense, I got lucky where I took action quick enough that I didn’t end up in the hospital, but really scary stuff.’
Instead of squeezing, Agullo recommends patients cover their blemish with a hydrocolloid sticker – also known as a ‘pimple patch’ – or apply skin topicals like benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid.
The influencer shared a piece of her experience in a TikTok video posted to her page in the aftermath and received dozens of messages from people who have had the same experience – or worse – with the ‘triangle of death’
He also suggested using a warm compress on the area.
But if you have picked at a pimple in the dreaded triangle, Agullo told the Daily Mail that you must ‘monitor the area.’
‘Look for signs that could put your life at risk: a fever and headaches that worsen suddenly, swelling, redness and protrusion of your eyes, blurred vision, difficulty moving your eyes or extreme sleepiness, confusion and unresponsiveness,’ he said.
‘If you suffer any of these symptoms, see a doctor immediately to ensure proper treatment can begin.’