Hidradenitis suppurativa

(HS) is a chronic skin disease that relates to a condition of inflammation of the skin marked by the presence of red, swollen, inflamed and painful tender bumps (lesions) or abscesses that culminate in pus like discharge that are difficult to heal once they break open and cause scarring.

Hidradenitis suppurativa is considered a severe form of skin acne also known as ‘acne inversa’. It most commonly affects apocrine sweat gland bearing skin such as the underarms, groin, under the breasts, inner thighs, buttocks and other parts of the body that are main locations for apocrine sweat glands and deep in the skin that contains oil or sebaceous glands and hair follicles.

The disease is non-contagious, although might be recurring and starts after puberty, persisting for years and might worsen over time. The condition can manifest as abscesses, sebaceous cysts, epidermoid cyst (cyst that develops out of ectodermal tissue), pilonidal cyst (that contains hair and skin debris) or may be multilocalised infections that can look as large as balls or as small as a pea which can be extremely painful especially to the touch and may persist for years and be recurrent.

Occasional to frequent periods of inflammation usually is triggered by perspiration, hormonal changes like monthly cycles in women, humidity or heat, and friction from clothing. Condition worsens if left undiagnosed and treated for several years, patients usually are too ashamed to go to a doctor in order to get it checked, also because the condition is frequently misdiagnosed and or prescribed ineffective treatments due to little research conducted on the disease.

Hidradenitis suppurativa is considered a rare disease that is three times more likely to affect women than men, and commonly occurs in patients between ages of 20-40, coinciding with the increase in post-pubertal in androgen levels.

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