Bacteria are small organisms, some of which may be found in low levels in normal skin but without any harmful effect.
You also have innate bacteria in your body that helps digest your food and fights to protect your body from harmful bacteria that cause illness.
When the levels of the bacteria (e.g. Staphylococcus Aureus) increase they can cause skin rashes such as infection, eczema, impetigo or cellulitis.
Streptococcus is another common bacteria to infect the skin or cause skin rashes from infection elsewhere (e.g. streptococcus throat infections causing guttate psoriasis).
Symptoms
You can experience generalised symptoms, such as fevers, chills and fatigue as a result of a bacterial infection anywhere in the body.
A bacterial infection can also spread throughout the blood, causing a condition described as sepsis.
Localized Symptoms
In addition to generalised symptoms, you can experience local effects of a bacterial infection. The type of infection can be confirmed by taking a swab for culture. Treatment is with the appropriate antibiotic.