Is it necessary to have surgery for a pilonidal sinus?

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Gladson Guddappa Uchil

ENT, Head & Neck Surgeon at Bengaluru, India.

75w ago

You have misunderstood your doctor! He has prescribed you medication to cure the infection not the underlying pathology which if not operated will get infected again. The intention of giving you the medication is only to get the area ready for surgery & NOT as an alternative to surgery!

Meet your doctor after 3–4 days to plan the surgery before the sinus gets infected again!

Mani Lakshmanan

Senior Resident, Dept. of Surgical Oncology at King George’s Medical University

Pilonidal sinuses do not close by themselves. There is an established tract which has to be excised surgically. If left alone it undergoes recurrent infection for which the treatment is antibiotics or incision & drainage (I & D) in case of established abscess. An I & D can be quite troublesome as the wound is left open to granulate & heal. Better option would be to undergo an elective surgery where the wound is closed with flaps.