Hydrosadenitis, which is a chronic skin disease that causes small inflamed nodules to appear under the skin. There is no cure, however, your symptoms can be relieved and controlled with some treatments that include antibiotics, injections of cortioids or surgery, for example.
Hydrosadenitis usually appears in the folds of the skin, such as the armpits or groins, after adolescence, and tends to get worse over the years. Therefore, treatment should be started as soon as possible to avoid worsening the disease, which may include:
- Antibiotics: can be used in the form of ointments to pass on the skin or tablets to swallow and help to prevent the appearance of inflamed nodules on the skin; Corticoid remedies: can be injected directly into the nodules to reduce inflammation during periods of crisis or used in the form of pills to try to avoid symptoms; Immunomodulators: these are drugs that reduce the immune response and, therefore, decrease the chances of developing inflamed nodules.
These remedies must be guided by a dermatologist, and the treatment must be constantly evaluated, as some of these medications can increase the risk of infections or the appearance of cancer.
In the most severe cases, when it is not possible to control symptoms with just the use of medication, the doctor may recommend having surgery.
Surgery for hydrosadenitis
Surgery for hydrosadenitis is usually indicated for the most persistent cases of the disease, in which it is not possible to relieve symptoms just with the use of medicines.
The type of surgical treatment usually varies according to the amount of skin affected, and when the disease appears only in a small region, small cuts can be made to drain the nodules, relieving pain and swelling.
When hydrosadenitis appears in larger areas, the doctor can remove all the affected skin and replace it with a healthy skin graft taken from another part of the body. Although this treatment can treat hydrosadenitis in the region, it does not prevent the onset of the disease in other areas of the skin.
