Pilinodal Sinus.......nice

Lethagized · 16 Jul 2012 at 20:18

Just found out that i've got one of these. I first felt a little bit uncomfortable when sitting on a brick step last wednesday. The following saturday night it came on strong and moving about in bed was a nightmare. All day sunday was spent horizontal on the sofa but today it doesn't feel half as bad. I can actually sit once i've got into a position but i'm just hoping it doesn't get worse again otherwise it'll be surgery time. What i find strange is, the NHS website says that it's a rare condition only affecting 26 in every 100,000 people per year but there are quite a few on here that have had it and even my missis's dad had it when he was younger so the NHS website must be inaccurate.

shawsy109 · 16 Jul 2012 at 20:21

Well, when i google imaged it i wasnt expecting the results that i saw. certainly not the worst thing ive seen on the internet though.

ntg · 16 Jul 2012 at 20:38

OP, don't know if your doctor has mentioned it but there is an alternative to a full blown operation.

You can treat it with phenol (basically they make an incision and cauterise it, look here: http://lib.bioinfo.pl/pmid:15868494). I had a pilonidal cyst and I looked into it a lot. My surgeon was very experienced and he suggested it as a half-way solution, kind of "try and see if it works, if not go for the full op". It's also a day procedure.

I don't know why this option is rarely mentioned online, it looks like everybody suggests doing the full op, which I can't understand. It's worth noting that the surgeon who will do the full op needs to be really experienced otherwise you are at risk of getting it back again.

Anyway, I suffered from recurring pilonidal cyst infections, had the phenol solution and never had a problem since. The recuperation period was about 3 days after, not a big deal and nothing compared to the weeks it takes after the full op (whatever your surgeon says, it will be a couple of weeks) and painless as well.

The only downside is that for many people it won't work, in the sense that you will get relief for a few months and then the problem will recur. However, it's much less invasive and you might be in the lucky % of those that never have a problem again, like myself. Especially if you have private insurance you got nothing to lose.

Hope it helps, consult your doctor about this option as well.

ntg · 16 Jul 2012 at 20:40

Lethagized said:
Just found out that i've got one of these. I first felt a little bit uncomfortable when sitting on a brick step last wednesday. The following saturday night it came on strong and moving about in bed was a nightmare. All day sunday was spent horizontal on the sofa but today it doesn't feel half as bad. I can actually sit once i've got into a position but i'm just hoping it doesn't get worse again otherwise it'll be surgery time. What i find strange is, the NHS website says that it's a rare condition only affecting 26 in every 100,000 people per year but there are quite a few on here that have had it and even my missis's dad had it when he was younger so the NHS website must be inaccurate.

Generally speaking, surgery is not advised unless you get it more than 3-4 times a year. If you get it fewer times, going to the A&E and having it lanced is more preferable (some people can even bust it themselves - it can be done if when it's swollen it has a head but it hurts, a lot, like A LOT more than you can imagine). The full surgery is really invasive and you'd want to avoid it as much as possible.

godinman · 16 Jul 2012 at 20:52

MY EYES!!!!!!!!1111!!!

swillsy · 16 Jul 2012 at 20:55

Add me to the list - 7 years ago

Had a doctor empty it and then applied antiseptic cream. They told me I needed surgery but I never went back and it never reappeared.

Thoughts going out to you bro!

SpeedFreak · 16 Jul 2012 at 20:58

Well I had the surgery 2 1/2 years ago and thankfully have not had a problem since. it took quite a white for it to heal fully, it was quite a deep excision. I agree with the point about it being uncommon, from anecdotal evidence it seems closer to 1 in 1,000.

A[L]C · 16 Jul 2012 at 21:16

Holy thread revival

It's not fun I'll tell you that much. Did I ever post pics? Don't think so, so here's some

http://img268.imageshack.us/img268/281/26012009252.jpg

http://img341.imageshack.us/img341/8236/15022009096.jpg

Freefaller · 16 Jul 2012 at 21:38

Wow!

That's a hole and a half!

meh? · 16 Jul 2012 at 21:41

Yay, I had this done last year. Them pictures bring back some many memories

413x · 16 Jul 2012 at 21:51

I had one! I was at uni with no car, i had to bike to AandE. Nurse asked how i got down here, and said it was impressive i biked lol.

She said it was 50:50 that i would need surgery .. I didnt

I gonna have to google it..on the 46"tv

SpeedFreak · 16 Jul 2012 at 22:09

meh? said:
Yay, I had this done last year. Them pictures bring back some many memories

ain't that the truth lol

Lethagized · 16 Jul 2012 at 22:15

al4x said:
I gonna have to google it..on the 46"tv

Err yeah..thanks buddy. I now have tea all over my keyboard and desk thanks to projectile tea spitting due to laughter.

Ephemera · 16 Jul 2012 at 22:21

A[L]C;22359248 said:
Holy thread revival

It's not fun I'll tell you that much. Did I ever post pics? Don't think so, so here's some

http://img268.imageshack.us/img268/281/26012009252.jpg

http://img341.imageshack.us/img341/8236/15022009096.jpg

How long did recovery take from that?? :eek:

I think I remember seeing a pilonidal sinus on Embarrassing bodies last year. They showed about 5 minutes of the operation which at first started out with a tiny incision but they kept cutting deeper and deeper and by the end it was enormous.

SpeedFreak · 16 Jul 2012 at 22:34

Mine took about 8 weeks in all, at least that was how long I had off work....

A[L]C · 16 Jul 2012 at 23:15

I was off work for about 3 months I think. I work in IT, so sat on your bum all day got pretty sore. I did work from home on the laptop during that though

NitrogenY3K · 16 Jul 2012 at 23:23

Had one of these a few years back, op went ok, cut it all out and let it heal from the inside out. Thing is healing didnt go according to plan and took a total of 9months for the wound to close fully. Mind you after the op they said you could fit an orange in the wound, so it was fairly large

djmc0 · 16 Jul 2012 at 23:27

I also suffer from this god aweful blight! It tends to come and go every six months or so. However, personally I can not afford to get it treated at present, as I am self employed, and apparently if operated on, it requires 3 months of rest, with the open wound being repacked once a day. Still, it's good fun when it bursts, and I have to throw away yet another set of perfect sheets!

TehBluebear · 16 Jul 2012 at 23:44

Had one of these about two years ago, mine was only a small one and they had to put a small amount of packing in to let the wound knit together in 'stages' if i remember correctly. Worst thing about mine was waking up after the operation only to find that they had me lying down normally, the pain was immense haha. Mine was nowhere NEAR as big as some of the pics posted though!!

At least I don't think it was! Doctors were saying there was much less then they had expected to cut out.

Mum has had one before, she said hers was much worse due to the amount of flesh they had to cut out, right down to her coccyx pretty much! That was about 30 years ago though.

Lethagized · 21 Jul 2012 at 13:43

Well, after my first one right at the top of the crack went away on it's own, (which is quite rare to go away on their own from what i've read), i now have another one further down but on the left cheek. Went to the docs and he's gave me some antibiotics. Literally a whole week wasted for me with these 2. What a pain in the arse this is!