ArticleThe British journal of surgery2024
Real-world practice and outcomes in pilonidal surgery: Pilonidal Sinus Treatment Studying The Options (PITSTOP) cohort.
Article in The British journal of surgery, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 19 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
19 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 29 citations in OpenAlex.
- Negative pressure wound therapy in primary closure surgeries for pilonidal disease: a meta-analysis.Updates in surgery · 2026Pooled it
- Lived experience of pilonidal sinus disease: Systematic review and meta-ethnography.Colorectal disease : the official journal of the Association of Coloproctology of Great Britain and Ireland · 2025Pooled it
- Patient-centred treatment failure and secondary prevention after Bascom I for pilonidal sinus disease.Colorectal disease : the official journal of the Association of Coloproctology of Great Britain and Ireland · 2026Article
- An algorithmic proposal for the treatment of pilonidal disease based on outcomes over a 30 year period.Techniques in coloproctology · 2026Article
- The association between skin-suturing technique, prolonged healing and recurrence after Bascom's Cleft lift surgery.Techniques in coloproctology · 2026Article
- Early postoperative outcomes of sinus laser closure versus crystallized phenol treatment for pilonidal sinus disease: a retrospective comparative study.Techniques in coloproctology · 2026Article
- Treatment Outcomes of Presacral Pilonidal Sinus Disease Using Crystallised Phenol: A Single-Centre Clinical Series.International wound journal · 2026Article
- Long-term outcomes of endoscopic pilonidal sinus treatment: A single tertiary centre experience.Journal of minimal access surgery · 2026Article
- Surgical preference and outcomes in pilonidal sinus disease: a national multicenter study evaluating complications, recurrence, and quality of life (PISI TURKEY).Techniques in coloproctology · 2026Observational
- Pilonidal Disease: A Brazilian epidemiological study with an overview of 45,000 surgeries performed in the Unified Health System.Revista do Colegio Brasileiro de Cirurgioes · 2026Article
- Article
- Future of pilonidal cyst surgery: a comparative review of traditional and laser techniques.BMC surgery · 2025Review
- Investigating recurrence in pilonidal sinus disease: results of a nationwide, multicenter study in Turkey (PISI TURKEY).International journal of colorectal disease · 2025Article
- The validation of a simple and instrument-free technique to measure the depth of the natal cleft (a cohort study).Colorectal disease : the official journal of the Association of Coloproctology of Great Britain and Ireland · 2025Article
- A Rare Case of Sacrococcygeal Pilonidal Abscess Caused by Coinfection ofInfection and drug resistance · 2025Article
- Time trends in incidence of pilonidal sinus disease from 1996 to 2021: A Danish population-based cohort study.Colorectal disease : the official journal of the Association of Coloproctology of Great Britain and Ireland · 2024Article
- Decision regret following surgical management of pilonidal disease.Colorectal disease : the official journal of the Association of Coloproctology of Great Britain and Ireland · 2024Article
- Research and practice priorities in pilonidal sinus disease: a consensus from the PITSTOP study.Colorectal disease : the official journal of the Association of Coloproctology of Great Britain and Ireland · 2024Article
- Pilonidal reality calls for action.The British journal of surgery · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
- Commented on by
Authors and funding
13 authors at 7 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundNumerous surgical approaches exist for the treatment of pilonidal disease. Current literature on treatment is of poor quality, limiting the ability to define optimal intervention. The aim of this study was to provide real-world data on current surgical practice and report patient and risk-adjusted outcomes, informing future trial design.
methodsThis UK-wide multicentre prospective cohort study, including patients (aged over 16 years) who had definitive treatment for symptomatic pilonidal disease, was conducted between May 2019 and March 2022. Patient and disease characteristics, and intervention details were analysed. Data on patient-reported outcomes, including pain, complications, treatment failure, wound issues, and quality of life, were gathered at various time points up to 6 months after surgery. Strategies were implemented to adjust for risk influencing different treatment choices and outcomes.
resultsOf the 667 participants consenting, 574 (86.1%) were followed up to the study end. Twelve interventions were observed. Broadly, 59.5% underwent major excisional surgery and 40.5% minimally invasive surgery. Complications occurred in 45.1% of the cohort. Those who had minimally invasive procedures had better quality of life and, after risk adjustment, less pain (score on day 1: mean difference 1.58, 95% c.i. 1.14 to 2.01), fewer complications (difference 17.5 (95% c.i. 9.1 to 25.9)%), more rapid return to normal activities (mean difference 25.9 (18.4 to 33.4) days) but a rate of higher treatment failure (difference 9.6 (95% c.i. 17.3 to 1.9)%). At study end, 25% reported an unhealed wound and 10% had not returned to normal activities.
conclusionThe burden after surgery for pilonidal disease is high and treatment failure is common. Minimally invasive techniques may improve outcomes at the expense of a 10% higher risk of treatment failure.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.