[Is preventive epilation following sacral dermoid operation useful or ineffective?]. / Ist die Epilationsprophylaxe nach Sacraldermoidoperation nützlich oder wirkungslos?

Following operation for pilonidal sinus, 79 patients were followed up for 1-10 years. The ratio male/female was 6 to 1. The majority of the patients had overweight. After primary closure of the wound, 62% healed without and 38% with infection. There were 15 recurrencies (19%) noted in this series. Consequent regular epilation was advised following the operation. One half of all patients neglected our recommendation and only 2/3 of the remaining patients practiced this regularly for a shorter or longer period of time. There were more recurrencies among the patients with regular epilation than the others who neglected epilation. In our study the practice of consequent regular epilation was not successful in preventing recurrent pilonidal sinus.