What is Pilondial Disease?
Pilonidal Disease is a skin infection that forms in the gluteal cleft, or in less polite society butt crack, just below the base of the spine. Pilonidal is literally a nest of hair, and when adults face a Pliondial infection, their gluteal cleft becomes infected with these overgrowths of hair that can cause irritation, pus, and can even cause fever and nausea.
Pilonidal disease affects men and women usually from the age of 20 -40 but affects men almost three times more likely than women. People who are obese, suffer from poor hygiene, and who sit often for their job such as driving or at an office, are at further risk of developing Pilonidal Disease.
Symptoms
If you are suffering from any of these symptoms near your gluteal cleft, it may be time for you to consult a medical professional:
- Pain, tenderness, or swelling
- Small cuts or holes in the area that leak fluid, either clear or pus-like
- Pus-like odors emanating from the region
Treatments
The good news for those who are suffering from Pilonidal Disease is that there are a series of safe, well-researched procedures that can treat anything from a mild infection to more serious recurrent issues.
Nonoperative Treatment
For most minor conditions, simply shaving the region and removing ingrown or infected hair from the region has been proven to be quite effective.
Operative Treatment
Minimal and Moderate operations
Incisions and drainage require doctors to perform incisions into the diseased area and drain the area of liquid in order to reduce swelling and pain in the area.
An Incision with marsupialization might become necessary if the patient suffers from multiple wounds. By slicing up the series of the wound into one wound and creating a pouch around it, it provides more comfort and ease of being while in recovery.
A Bascom 1 Procedure, designed by Dr. Bascom, focuses on removing hair from the infected area and requires fewer incisions to be made.
Severe Occurance Treatment
For patients with more severe and recurrent issues, it may be appropriate to find more dramatic solutions such as
Flap Closure – While there are many forms of Flap closure procedure, the central principle is creating an incision around the infected area, removing it, and closing up fat and skin around the wound to heal.
- Z Plasties are very similar but use a Z like design in order to leave less scarring on the skin after the procedure
Bascom 2 Procedure – The unhealed skin and sinus tracts are removed from the area and a thick flap of skin is draped over the wound. The main difference between a Bascom procedure and a Flap Closure is that Bascom relies on skin flaps to heal the wound while Flap closures stitch the surrounding fat and skin area together.
Pilonidal Disease can be painful and irritating but can be commonly treated. If you feel that you are suffering from Pilonidal Disease, please contact your primary physician and receive treatment.
SGLA came up with a novel technique for treating pilonidal disease, which involves removing the diseased tissue and reconstructing the wound by bringing healthy gluteal tissue towards the midline. Sutures were afterwards added for extra support in keeping the wound closed. There data collected from patients showed promising results, including a 0 recurrence rate and a low dehiscence rate. Other advantages include that the procedure is outpatient and is cosmetically favorable because the resulting scar is midline. The study is currently under review to be published in a journal.
