TREATMENT
If there is a painful infection trapped below the skin this is called an abscess. This should be drained with a small incision. Sometimes sitting in a sitz bath can help drain an area if it has not progressed too far.
If you have a small hole, or holes, that are draining blood and purulent material intermittently there are 3 treatment options:
First option, leave it alone. As long as it’s draining and it is not painful it is not dangerous. If you are able to tolerate the inconvenience consider carefully whether it is worth it for you to attempt an intervention. The surgery with the fewest complications and the least recovery time is the one that is never done.
Second option is called the GIPS procedure. It is named after Dr. M. Gips who describes it well in the video link below. This is a good option for many people. You can watch it here: GIPS VIDEO
If you choose to have a Gips procedure with Dr. Mandelbaum you will need to remove all the hair in the area, preferably with laser hair removal, prior to the procedure.
Third option is a wide excision attempting to remove all of the infected tissue and tunnels below the surface. Dr. Mandelbaum’s practice is to leave these large wounds open. Dressings within the wound are changed daily by home care nurses. The usual healing time is about 2 months. Unfortunately recurrence is a possibility.