Background: Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a chronic debilitating skin disease in inverse body areas. Wide excision is recommended in Hurley Stages II to III, but the rate and symptoms of recurrences in long-term follow-up remain unclear.
Objective: To analyze the allocation of recurrences regarding the operative field, the onset and quality of HS symptoms as well as factors associated with recurrences in long-term follow-up.
Material and methods: Forty-eight patients with Hurley Stage III disease who had undergone 91 wide excisions from 2010 to 2015 were clinically examined regarding postoperative complications and allocation and quality of recurrences. To determine the risk of recurrence, possible surgery, and lifestyle-related associated factors were investigated.
Results: Postoperative recurrences of HS were seen in 54.2%. Most recurrences (inflamed nodules) were detected in a <1-cm margin around the operative field (18.7%). Surgery under tumescence local anesthesia showed symptoms in 40.6% compared with 28.6% under general anesthesia. Increased alcohol consumption (p = .027) but not body mass index (p = .11) or smoking behavior (p = .45) had significant effect on relapse of HS.
Conclusion: Caution must be given especially in surgery with local anesthesia only. Half of patients with HS showed long-term follow-up signs of recurrence after wide excision, most frequently nearby the operation field.