Pilonidal cyst surgeries are done under general anesthesia at an outpatient surgical center. The surgery itself takes about 45 minutes to perform. You'll probably go home several hours after your procedure. You should arrange to have someone drive you home.

Keep the area clean and dry, and either shave or use depilatory creams to keep the area free of hair. Also, try to avoid prolonged sitting or excessive repetitive pressure to the area of the coccyx (tailbone). Weight loss in obese individuals may also help decrease the development and recurrence of pilonidal disease.

Surgery is needed to drain and remove a pilonidal cyst that does not heal. Your doctor may recommend this procedure if you have pilonidal disease that is causing pain or infection. A pilonidal cyst that is not causing symptoms does not need treatment.

Overall, laser hair removal is a very useful adjunct to surgical removal of the pilonidal sinus to prevent recurrence, which is almost a rule.

Pilonidal sinuses are most common in young adults and are rarely seen in children or people over 40 years old. They happen slightly more often in men than women and seem to occur more often in people with a lot of body hair.

If it's not treated, a pilonidal cyst can possibly lead to an abscess or a sinus cavity. Those are both signs that the skin infection is getting worse