Hidradenitis Procedures: What to Log Before and After

Updated 29 Oct 2026

A procedure for hidradenitis suppurativa treats one area on one day, but the question afterward runs for weeks: did it heal, and did the lesion come back?

This guide explains what to log around an HS procedure: a baseline before, the procedure day, healing afterward, whether the treated area returns, and what to bring to your dermatologist.

Why log around a hidradenitis procedure

The American Academy of Dermatology notes that some patients can benefit from a treatment plan that includes a procedure, and that a few in-office procedures are especially helpful if tunnels have formed in the skin (American Academy of Dermatology). The NHS notes surgery may be considered in cases where hidradenitis suppurativa cannot be controlled with medicine (NHS).

The AAD notes possible side effects of an in-office surgical procedure include an infection and the possibility of the treated lesion returning (AAD). It also notes that after laser surgery, it may take up to 6 months for your skin to heal (AAD). Both mean the outcome shows over months, not days.

A dated log for each treated site makes that outcome visible. It ties the procedure to the area, the healing, and any return, so you and your dermatologist can judge it later.

For tunnels and scars in particular, see what to photograph and log about scars and tunnels. In Hidradenitis Journey, the Daily Journal keeps a dated note for each procedure.

What to record before the procedure

Start with a baseline for the area to be treated. The AAD notes that dermatologists ask where you have lumps, drainage, and pain or other symptoms (AAD). Write the body site, how many lumps or tunnels are there, whether they drain, and a pain score from 0 to 10.

Take a dated photo of the area in the same light and position you can repeat later. Note how long the lesion has been there and how many times it has flared.

Write down the plan your dermatologist gave you. The AAD describes corticosteroid injection to treat painful nodules, abscesses, and tunnels that are not infected, and in-office surgical procedures to drain a painful lump, treat a painful tunnel in your skin, or remove a lesion that keeps returning (AAD). It also notes that before laser surgery, your dermatologist will prescribe medication to get hidradenitis suppurativa under control (AAD). Log any medicine started before the procedure, with its start date.

In Hidradenitis Journey, the Flare Tracker records the area, and My Meds keeps the pre-procedure medicine with its date.

What to note on the procedure day

Record the date, the clinic, the body site, and what was done, in the words your dermatologist used. Add which side of the body, so later notes are not confused with a nearby area.

The AAD notes that before an in-office surgical procedure, your dermatologist will numb the area and you'll remain awake, and that a surgical blade, laser, or other surgical instrument may be used (AAD). Write which one was used if you were told.

Write down the aftercare instructions before you leave. The AAD notes that to help prevent an infection and obtain the best results after surgery, you'll need to care for the surgical wound at home (AAD). Note how often to change dressings, what to use, and who to contact with a concern.

For laser hair removal, the AAD notes treatment is typically done once every 4 to 6 weeks and it may take months to see improvement (AAD). Log each session with its date and site.

In Hidradenitis Journey, My Care Team keeps the clinic's contact details beside the record.

How to track healing after the procedure

Each day, log the treated site's pain from 0 to 10, any drainage, and each dressing change. The AAD notes that wound care plays an important role in treating hidradenitis suppurativa, as some patients have slow-healing or non-healing wounds (AAD).

Take a dated photo of the site once a week in the same light and position as the baseline. Add a line on whether it looks smaller, the same, or larger than the week before.

Note signs your dermatologist told you to report. The AAD lists infection among possible side effects of an in-office surgical procedure (AAD). Write the date you first noticed any change and when you contacted the clinic.

Keep logging the rest of your skin too, so a flare elsewhere is not mistaken for a problem at the treated site.

For drainage days, see what to note on drainage days. In Hidradenitis Journey, the Daily check-in records pain and drainage each day.

How to log recurrence and bring it to a review

The AAD notes the possibility of the treated lesion returning after an in-office surgical procedure (AAD). Keep the site's record open after it heals. Each month, note whether a lump, drainage, or tunnel has come back at the same site, and add a dated photo.

Before your review, prepare a short summary for each treated site: the procedure and date, the baseline, how long healing took, any problems, and whether it has returned. Put your main question at the top.

Useful questions include whether the result matches what was expected, whether more sessions are planned, and what to do if the lesion returns. The NHS notes hidradenitis suppurativa is a lifelong, recurring condition, and that having to regularly change dressings and live with the pain can affect your quality of life (NHS). Note how the procedure affected daily life as well.

For a short appointment, see what to bring to a 15-minute visit. In Hidradenitis Journey, the Doctor Report builds a dated summary for a saved doctor.

How Hidradenitis Journey can help

A notebook can hold a procedure date. The harder part is keeping the baseline, the procedure, healing, and any return in one dated record for each site.

Hidradenitis Journey is a personal hidradenitis suppurativa tracker from Health Journey Labs on the App Store and Google Play. It records flares, photos, pain, medicines, and appointments in one dated history. Below is what you can use and how each part helps:

• Daily check-in — A short guided pass across symptoms, mood, nutrition, sleep, exercise, meds, and external factors, including nodule pain, drainage, and skin-fold flares, so links you would not remember on your own show up side by side.
• Daily Journal — Freer notes, including voice when typing hurts, such as dressing counts, photo notes, and visit debriefs, that add detail a score alone cannot show.
• Flare Tracker — Mark a day clearly worse than your usual, with onset, sites, and intensity, so you can tell a one-off spike from a repeating pattern.
• My Meds — Medicine names and timing, so you can line up a start date or dose change with lump counts, pain, and sleep.
• My Labs — Result dates for swabs, blood work, imaging, and other tests, compared with how you felt in the weeks before and after.
• Weekly Goals — Set one small aim, such as a daily wash routine or looser clothing on long days, and see whether it held and whether flares changed.
• Learn — Short education topics on HS themes such as flares, sleep, pacing, and visit preparation.
• AI companions — Clara and specialist companions already see your logged history, which helps with visit wording or questions after a new diagnosis.
• My Care Team — A profile for each clinician, plus upcoming appointments and notes for each visit, used before, during, and after appointments.
• Doctor Report — Two views: the Appointment Planning Report helps you prepare what to ask, and Generate Report, opened from a saved doctor, builds a dated summary of your recent progress for that doctor.
• My Assessments — Structured check-ins that add context about you across weeks.
• Food Tracker — Meal and drink lines when food is something you and your clinician are watching alongside flares.
• Period Tracker — Cycle dates, so you can see whether new lumps cluster at a certain point in the cycle.
• Weight Tracker — Weight entries when weight is part of what you and your clinician are watching.

Everything you log builds one history. Guided forms include the key questions, and you can add custom symptoms when you need your own labels. Hidradenitis Journey is free to download.

Sources

• American Academy of Dermatology — Hidradenitis suppurativa: Diagnosis and treatment
• NHS — Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS)

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