Hi,

I’m hoping someone may be able to assist me; our young adult son was operated on for recurrent pilonidal sinuses/abscesses a couple of years ago. Since then we’ve discovered that unless he keeps his perianal area as hairless as possible (i.e. me or my husband shaving/plucking the area as he’s not a contortionist) his skin breaks down leading to the beginning of pilonidal sinus. He isn’t abnormally hairy in that region (I’m an RN so have seen quite a few male buttocks).

If possible, our son would like the hair removal done at home (for obvious reasons) plus it would mean I could do just a few hairs at a time (part of the wound area is hypersensitive).

I’ve read a number of previous posts as I’m a newbie; from what I’ve read it appears that electrolysis is our only option. Please correct me if I’m wrong.

Can someone advise me which make/model would be suitable & effective? We live in Australia.

Thanks,

Electrolysis is very hard to perform yourself effectively. You need hours of training and practice. Cheap "home" machines are very temporary and take a very long time per hair.

Electrolysis is not the only option. It depends on his hair and skin type. If his hair is dark and coarse, he can get laser treatments, which would be inexpensive for such a small area and quick. I had this area done myself and am happy after only 3 treatments there. Electrolysis is needed if the hair is fine instead of coarse.

This is a common area to get done professionally btw. So I wouldn't worry too much about getting professional treatments. There is no easy at-home solution at this point that doesn't require training and practice, i.e. some serious time and effort commitment.

Thanks for replying lagirl.

One of the other reasons we're keen to try DIY is that we live in the country; getting to a largish town means over an hour drive each way (plus he'd have to take time off work which his bosses wouldn't be happy about). I haven't looked for professional hair removalists; it may be he'd have a drive of 5 hours (each way) to find highly competent clinics. It's what we have to do for medical specialists unless we're lucky & a specialist visits here.

He did go for one hair removal treatment (either laser or flashlamp?) which resulted in the old wound area breaking down immediately (the skin in that area is still very fragile). He's been accepted into the armed forces with the proviso that this problem is fixed. He can hardly take his mum with him as his private shaver/plucker <g>.

His hair is fine & dark brown which is why I thought electrolysis was the main option (after reading the forum's posts) but I'm very open to any suggestions.

I've been treating that area on a daily basis for the past 2 years; my son & I'm quite happy to spend more time especially if there's a prospect of the area healing properly by permanent hair removal.

Learning how to perform electrolysis on yourself on a body part you can easily reach like your arms or legs is hard enough. Trust me, I know

Given you need this work done on another person, on sensitive and vulnerable skin, and you have a tight time frame in which to get it done you should see a professional electrologist. A professional electrologist is a health care professional and he should not be concerned or embarrassed by needing that part of the body worked on; ask the pros here, they have seen it all

This is difficult. But I still really wouldn't advise you to attempt it yourself especially on this sensitive area. It is likely that you will cause some scarring, irritation, etc while you're still learning. This area is hard enough to treat for electrologists with years of experience. It's not the type of skill you can pick up in a few weeks.

Electrolysis would involve maybe 1-2 hr long treatments once every 3 weeks. If you can commit to driving out for those (many electrologists work evenings and weekends), that would be your best bet.

It sounds like someone inexperienced burned him using an IPL. If the hair is fine as you say, laser is not a great option anyway.

Kacee,

I would strongly urge you to consult a professional electrologist or even laser hair removal professional to treat this area.

First off, this is an incredibly sensitive area. We're talking peel you off the ceiling pain here.

Secondly, due to the nature of the area, infection control will be a key concern.

Electrolysis is permanent. Laser may help with reduction, but at the very least, laser can provide temporary relief without the lengthy treatment time or discomfort.

Thanks for all the advice guys (& gals); I've talked it over with my son & informed him of your opinions. He's agreed to see a professional electrologist who works on weekends IF I can find one that isn't a 5 hour drive away.