Caused by loose hairs inserting into the skin of the natal cleft and causes chronic subcutaneous infection.
Abscess which travels caudally and opens associated one or more sinuses at or near the midline. 2121/>
Often very painful.
Typically occur between the ages of 15 and 35.
Although usually found near the coccyx, the condition can also affect the umbilicus, axilla or genital region, though these locations are much rarer.
Symptoms include: Pain, discomfort or swelling above the anus or near the tailbone.
Some people with a pilonidal cyst are asymptomatic.
A sinus tract, or small channel, may open to the surface of the skin and material from the cyst may drain through the pilonidal sinus.
A pilonidal cyst is usually painful, but with draining, the patient might not feel pain.
One cause of pilonidal cysts is ingrown hair.
Excessive sitting increases pressure on the coccygeal region and causes pilonidal cysts.
Trauma does not cause pilonidal cyst;s but may result in inflammation of an existing cyst.
May be the result of a congenital pilonidal dimple.
Excessive sweating can contribute to the cause of a pilonidal cyst.
Moisture can fill a stretched hair follicle, creating a low-oxygen environment that promotes the growth of anaerobic bacteria, often found in pilonidal cysts.
The presence of bacteria and low oxygen levels impair wound healing and exacerbate the formation of a pilonidal cyst.
A pilonidal cyst can resemble a dermoid cyst, a kind of sacrococcygeal teratoma.
Treatment include: antibiotic therapy, hot compresses and application of depilatory creams.
The cyst may need to be lanced or surgically excised along with pilonidal sinus tracts.
Post-surgical wound packing may be necessary.
Up to two years may be required for complete granulation to occur.
The cyst may also be resolved via surgical marsupialization or excision of the sinus and repair with a reconstructive flap technique, such as a cleft lift procedure or Z-plasty
Pilonidal cysts recur more frequently if the surgical wound is sutured in the midline, as opposed to away from the midline.
An incision lateral to the intergluteal cleft is therefore pref2242ed.
A minimally invasive surgical technique with trephines or biopsy punches which core out and remove the diseased tissue and cyst can be used.
Minimally invasive technique to treat pilonidal sinus with fibrin glue, can be performed under local or general anesthesia.
Fibrin glue has also been shown to be better than more invasive alternatives in the treatment of pilonidal sinus disease in children.