Development of a clinical Scandinavian registry for hidradenitis suppurativa; HISREG

Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS; or acne inversa) is a scarring and frequently persistent inflammatory disorder of the terminal hair follicles of apocrine gland-bearing skin in adults. Treatments include local or systemic antibiotics, hormones, retinoids and systemic immunosuppressive agents (1), although on evaluation these have been shown to have only limited or temporary effect. In refractory cases, surgery is necessary, and should be radical and performed as early as possible (2, 3). It is essential to establish a registry of HS in order to address the following important issues: to assess the safety and effectiveness of different treatments; to identify which specific patient subgroups have the best risk/benefit ratio for a given treatment; and to create benchmark data for quality assurance of the medical service. This manuscript presents the Scandinavian Registry for HS, HISREG.