Cáncer escamoso asentado sobre sinus pilonidal recurrente: la evolución de una patología benigna y frecuente a una causa de muerte infrecuente / Squamous cancer settled on recurrent pilonidal sinus: the evolution of a benign and frequent pathology to an infrequent cause of death

El sinus pilonidal es una patología frecuente cuya malignización es infrecuente aunque su pronóstico puede ser fatal. El objetivo de esta publicación es presentar un caso de un paciente intervenido en múltiples ocasiones de escisiones de sinus pilonidal con degeneración maligna del mismo y evolución fatal, con el fin de recalcar la importancia del examen anatomopatológico sistemático de todas las muestras de escisión quirúrgica. (AU)

The pilonidal sinus is a frequent pathology whose malignization is uncommon although its prognosis can be fatal. The objective of this publication is to present a case of a patient intervened on multiple occasions of pilonidal sinus excisions with malignant degeneration and fatal evolution, in order to emphasize the importance of the systematic pathological examination of all surgical excision samples. (AU)

Recurrence-free survival, but not surgical therapy per se, determines 583 patients' long-term satisfaction following primary pilonidal sinus surgery.

PURPOSE: With pilonidal sinus disease (PSD) incidence increasing and patients freely choosing their surgeon, patients' interest issues have been brought forward estimating patient satisfaction following pilonidal sinus surgery. The influence of wound healing time and long-term recurrence rate on patient satisfaction in primary PSD surgery has not been investigated yet. METHODS: Five hundred eighty-three patients (German military cohort) were interviewed, compiling wound healing time, aesthetic satisfaction, long-term recurrence-free survival and patient satisfaction having undergone primary open (PO) treatment, marsupialization (MARS) or primary midline closure (PMC) treatment. Recurrence rate was determined by Kaplan-Meier calculation following up to 20 years after primary PSD surgery. RESULTS: Patient satisfaction ranking from 1 to 10 (10 = max. satisfied) showed an average satisfaction of 8.2 (range 0-10; 95% confidence interval (CI) 7891-8250). In-hospital stay time was significantly longer in primary open (PO) and marsupialization (MARS) group as compared to primary midline closure (PMC; p < 0.0001, Kruskal-Wallis test). Satisfaction was comparable between treatment groups, and was neither linked to in-hospital stay time nor to longer outpatient wound care period or total treatment time. Recurrence-free survival, as seen in the PO and PMC treatment group, revealed a highly significant difference for all patients. Improvement in MARS patients with versus without recurrence was low, as satisfaction with primary treatment was lower as the other groups. CONCLUSIONS: Neither choice of surgical treatment nor treatment duration within hospital or after hospital influences patient satisfaction, as long as recurrence-free survival can be provided. Marsupialization was ranked lower in both groups (with or without recurrence), and should be abandoned, as patients are significantly less satisfied with either results, independent of recurrence.

Karydakis flap procedure in patients with sacrococcygeal pilonidal sinus disease: experience of a single centre in Istanbul.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this retrospective study was to evaluate the results of patients with sacrococcygeal pilonidal sinus who underwent surgery using the Karydakis technique. METHODS: Two hundred fifty-seven patients with sacrococcygeal pilonidal sinus disease were treated by the Karydakis flap procedure between December 2003 and June 2011. Patients were evaluated with respect to age, gender, preoperative symptoms, duration of preoperative symptoms, history of pilonidal sinus surgery, early postoperative complications, recurrence rates, and cosmetic satisfaction. RESULTS: There were 223 (86.8%) male and 34 (13.2%) female patients. The mean age of the patients was 27.15 ± 7.69 years. The most frequent symptom was seropurulent discharge (57.58%). Postoperative morbidity was noted in 24 patients (9.3%). The mean hospital length of stay was 3.34 ± 1.42 days. The cosmetic satisfaction rate was 91.06%. Recurrences were noted in 6 patients (2.3%). CONCLUSION: The Karydakis flap procedure is a safe treatment alternative for the surgical treatment of sacrococcygeal pilonidal sinus disease owing to the associated low complication rate, short hospital length of stay, rapid healing, and a high patient satisfaction rate.