Ultrasound Evaluation May Assist in Staging HS Severity
Ultrasound could help to confirm diagnosis of hidradenitis suppurativa (HS), assess its severity, and improve management and treatment of the condition, according to the results of a recent study.
While Hurley staging, Sartorius score, HS-PGA, and HS Severity Index are most commonly used to evaluate severity of HS, clinical evaluation of deep lesions is not always possible.
In order to examine the relevance of ultrasound skin analysis for the evaluation of HS, researchers conducted a study of 20 individuals with HS diagnosis between January and September 2016. High frequency ultrasound systems were used to examine the participants’ lesions.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
RELATED CONTENT
Study Explores Coping Strategies of Patients with Hidradenitis Suppurativa
Is Ultrasound Diagnosis and Staging Useful in Pediatric Hidradenitis Suppurativa?
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The researchers “used UHF48 and UHF70 transducers with M-mode and Color Doppler mode,” and “described ultrasonographic aspects of widening of the hair follicles, thickening and/or abnormal echogenicity of the dermis, dermal pseudocystic nodules, fluid collections, fistulas.”
They found that in mild and severe HS, UHF48 transducers highlight the presence of dermal sinus tracts connected to the base of hair follicles, which may allow for the definition of staging of the disease. Color Doppler mode was used to stage and quantify subclinical inflammation.
This subclinical evaluation suggests that commonly used staging scores may underestimage disease stage and severity.
“Our study confirms the importance of [ultrasound] in objective anatomic evaluation of HS severity and follow-up. This technique may help to confirm HS diagnosis, to assess the severity of the disease, to improve the management of the patients and to evaluate the therapeutic effects of systemic and local treatments. Further studies are needed to validate the use of ultra-high frequency ultrasound in HS.
—Michael Potts
Reference:
Oranges T, Chiricozzi A, Dini V, et al. High frequency ultrasound in Hidradenitis Suppurativa [presented at the 75th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Dermatology]. Orlando, Florida. March 3, 2016.