If you have swollen areas and sore cysts on your body, you might suffer from HS – the skin condition with the full name Hidrosadenitis Suppurativa. If you haven’t heard about HS before, it is most likely because the topic is not very popularly written about – and because it doesn’t have a household name. This is despite the fact that scientists estimate between one and four percent of the population suffer from HS.
How to recognise HS?
HS is an uncomfortable disease, which appears as repeated outbreaks of cysts of zits that can result in scars. However, these are not the regular cysts and zits everybody can experience. HS is recognisable because the outbreak is present on both sides of the body, and it appears in certain areas where skin has contact with skin: armpits, groin, under the breasts, folds on the stomach, genitalia, buttocks, and around the rectum. HS is also recognisable because the zits and cysts return.
There is a lot we still don’t know
There is a lot we still don’t know about HS. We don’t know why some are more predisposed to developing the disease than others. However, we do know why we develop HS.
What is HS not?
- HS is not a transmitted disease
- HS is not a lethal disease
- HS is not caused by poor hygiene
- HS is not a rare disease – between one and four percent of the population are afflicted
What causes HS?
All strands of hair have a sebaceous gland connected to it that produce an oily substance, which makes the hair soft and water repellent. The oily substance layers in the channel the hair must grow through to protrude from the skin. If you have HS, the channel is narrowed, due to scar tissue – we don’t know how the initial scarring occurs.
When the channel closes, hair, bacteria, and keratin scales enter the surrounding tissue. The immune system reacts by inducing inflammation – causing blood vessels to dilate, making it possible for immune cells to reach the affected area. The large volume of blood causes the skin to turn red. The immune cells terminate the bacteria and cell in the area – both foreign and our own. The immune cells and the dead cells accumulate in the area and forms a cyst. Therefore, HS causes one to develop cysts.
The skin reacts to the inflammation by turning red, sore, and swollen. Besides being uncomfortable, the outbreak can result in scars. The scars can take the shape of pipes – and are caused by the body’s attempt to expel a cyst.
In some cases, bacteria will bloom in the affected area, making a bad situation worse. Then the inflammation will spread. The cysts of HS can also become malodourous because of the bacteria.
