Anyone experienced with Pilonidal Cysts?

[MichelleJustAsking]

For some, it seems to be due to being unclean and hairy... while for the rest of us, it's genetic and due to a lot of sitting (long commutes, desk jobs, etc..)

In my case, my Aunt had it, my Uncle had it, my Mom had it and my cousin had it. None of us are unclean, overweight or hairy.

In their cases, their surguries seemed successeful. But everything I read online seems to say that it's very difficult to treat successefully because it's a hard type of wound to heal.

Based on my family having success with surgery, is it likely I will as well?

I'm in the beginning stages of my first "episode" and it really doesn't hurt at all... but I want it taken care of before it's an issue. (People online are saying they were in agony in the ER. Yikes!). I'm just not sure what the best option is for treatment because they all sound bad and requiring more than one operation.

I see my dr tomorrow for actual medical advice, but it would be nice to hear patient stories if you've dealt with this in your own life.

Thanks!

Updates

+1 y

Good news! Went to the dr and he didn't seem to think it was anything to worry about, since whatever it was, was going away on it's own. He didn't suggest surgery or poking around at it at this point.. and wasn't convinced I even had one since he couldn't see any "pits". Even if I do have one, he said it was very small so if I ever needed surgery, it should be fairly easy.

[genericname85]

i had one. i´m not unclean und just mildly hairy. nobody in my family has had one (as far as i know).

so for me it went like this:

i always though it was just a zit or so, so i ignored it.
when i went to the doctors, ther was an abszess allready.

i´ve read online that it was possibly to sew it shut but if you do so, you have a chance of infection. but it would heal way faster if you´re lucky...

so i persuaded my doc to sew it shut but yeah... didn´t work out he had to cut it open again (just cut it when i was at one of my regular visits without anesthesia.

after that i had to used the standard healing. it is left open, you will have to get a new tamponade after a few days in the first time and later you wash it out with clear water and put pads and bandages on...

you will be uncomfortable for maybe 1 month and it will take up to 3 month to fully heal if everthing goes well. i was quite licky and never had a second op.
it´s not the worst experience of my life but certainly not pleasant either.

[BertMacklinFBI]

just remember, if you notice something wrong and find out it is a PC then get it treated immediately and maybe you can get away with just taking antibiotics and applying hot towels on the affected area to drain it.

if you wait until its too late then surgical procedures suck dick, they will literally cut you open.

[MichelleJustAsking]

That's exactly what I'm worried about. I want to get it taken care of before it's blown up. Right now it's a little red, but not that painful at all. I'm wondering if it makes sense to "make it go back to sleep" or jump right to surgery to remove it once and for all. I feel like since it's not bad now, then the surgery should be fairly uncomplicated and heal fast.

[BertMacklinFBI]

well if you have already identified it then go to like urgent care or something, let the examine it and then they will most likely prescribe you antibiotics PLUS tell you to constantly put a hot towel on it and drain the puss until it stops.

[MichelleJustAsking]

I have a dr apt tomorrow, so I'm not going to bother with Urgent Care.. and the strange thing is, it's like a hole is there but there isn't anything draining... not much pain or any buildup that I can feel under the skin. No lumps either. It's almost like there was a scab that someone picked off. You are right about the heat though; hot showers definitely help with what little pain is there.

[BertMacklinFBI]

yeah that's a good thing to get it checked out, usually with any kind of inflammation, applying a hot towel is the remedy, but I mean like hot like you can see the steam coming off the towel. it will burn a bit but it works wonders trust me and you'll feel so much better the next day and heal a lot quicker too.

[Justacatlady]

My SO had the surgery and his is coming back three years later. But he has a lot of other skin conditions so it is solely based on you and how you heal and other factors.

[MichelleJustAsking]

What type of surgery did he have? Closed up or open wound/dry packing? Or... cleft lift?

[Justacatlady]

Open wound dry packing. He said it took a very long time to heal and is quite upset at the thought of having to go through it again.

[MichelleJustAsking]

Gosh, I'm so sorry to hear :( I'm hoping mine won't take long to heal since it isn't out of control yet and people who had it in my family didn't have any complications. It's just scary to think about.

[Bill11]

Sorry to hear that I'm sure it's a little embarrassing. Just remember you can always get a second opinion form another Dr.