The importance of local subcutaneous fat thickness in pilonidal disease.

PURPOSE: This study was designed to investigate the local subcutaneous fat thickness in sacrococcygeal pilonidal disease.

METHODS

Subcutaneous fat thickness was measured by ultrasonography in 125 patients with sacrococcygeal pilonidal disease and 125 age-matched, body mass index-matched and gender-matched controls.

RESULTS

The sacrococcygeal subcutaneous fat thickness was 14.4 +/- 2.9 mm, 18.3 +/- 3.1 mm, and 22 +/- 2.2 mm, respectively, in normal, overweight, and obese patients with sacrococcygeal pilonidal disease and 9.1 +/- 3.1 mm, 11.3 +/- 2.6 mm, and 20 +/- 1.8 mm, respectively, in normal, overweight, and obese controls. Sacrococcygeal fat was significantly thicker in normal and overweight patients with pilonidal disease compared with controls with same body mass index (P< 0.01). There were no significant differences in fat thickness between obese patients and obese controls (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Sacrococcygeal fat thickness, as a local factor, is closely associated with pilonidal disease.