The use of silver nitrate in pilonidal sinus patients

BACKGROUND: Pilonidal sinus is a common disease in young males and restricts activities of daily living. There is no standard method for the treatment of this disease. There are many different methods for the treatment of the disease. In this study, we aimed to investigate the efficacy of silver nitrate, one of the conservative methods, in the treatment of pilonidal sinus. METHODS: The study included 74 patients who were admitted to the general surgery clinic for pilonidal sinus between March 2017 and March 2020. Patients who were operated or treated with other methods were excluded from the study and only patients who were treated with silver nitrate were included in the study. RESULTS: Of the 74 patients included in the study, 62 were male and 12 were female. Sixty patients underwent the procedure once, four patients twice, and two patients underwent the procedure 3 times. Surgical excision was performed with a lateral flap in two patients who failed to achieve success with the procedure. The mean recovery time of the patients was 15.6 days. The patients were followed for an average of 28.4 months. Four patients developed recurrence. Silver nitrate was readministered to four patients with recurrence. A patient who could not achieve success underwent resection and primary closure. CONCLUSIONS: Silver nitrate is a non-invasive method. It can be administered in outpatient settings and requires no anesthesia. Patients can continue their daily activities. In this study, we concluded that silver nitrate is effective in pilonidal sinus disease and provides healing in a short period of time.