Spontaneous Expulsion of a Sebaceous Cyst: A Case Report of a Rare Surgical Outcome

TL;DR

A rare case where a sebaceous cyst spontaneously expelled during treatment, leading to quick healing and no recurrence.

Contribution

Reports a spontaneous expulsion of a sebaceous cyst during wound care, a rare and unexpected surgical outcome.

Findings

Spontaneous expulsion of the cyst occurred during dressing, leading to rapid healing.

No recurrence was observed at the one-year follow-up.

The outcome resembles minimal excision techniques but happened naturally.

Abstract

Sebaceous cysts are lesions commonly found on the skin. Although they can occasionally get infected and rarely have other complications, they seldom cause any serious problems to the patient. Traditional treatment is through an elliptical skin incision, which can be delayed if the cyst is infected. Other minimally invasive methods of excision/treatment have also been described, which result in less scarring, better cosmetic outcome, and low morbidity. The present case is about an unusual outcome that occurred during the management of a sebaceous cyst. The patient presented with an inflamed sebaceous cyst on the back that already burst; hence, initial antibiotic treatment followed by delayed excision of the cyst was planned. However, there was spontaneous expulsion of the cyst while dressing the lesion. Subsequently, wound care was done, and healing occurred in around 10 days. There was no evidence of recurrence at the one-year follow-up. This outcome is unexpected and rare, but was somewhat like what has been described in various minimal excision techniques, though occurring spontaneously. Hence, while managing such cases, expulsion of the cyst wall or its portions should be looked for, as that can change the outcome.

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