HS Resources & News

Welcome to the Hive — Resources & News

HS news and wound-care resources, explained plain first and then the science — by a founder who lives with hidradenitis suppurativa. This page is information, not medical advice. Always add any routine to whatever your doctor tells you to do.

News Updates

October 28, 2026 — HS inflammation is tied to heart and diabetes risk — and treating it may protect more than skin

Explaining: HS is not just a skin thing. It is inflammation through the whole body, and that inflammation is tied to the heart and to blood sugar too. That is why so many of us are tired, in pain, and dealing with more than the flares people can see.

The science: A retrospective TriNetX cohort study, highlighted by the Journal of Drugs in Dermatology (Oct 27, 2026), compared HS patients on biologic therapy (TNF-α and IL-17 inhibitors) with HS patients not on a biologic. The biologic group had lower risk of type 2 diabetes, heart attack, stroke, and heart failure — and on several outcomes, the IL-17 inhibitor group came out lower than the TNF-α group. This is an association from records, not proof of cause — talk to your own doctor about what it means for you.

Source: Journal of Drugs in Dermatology — Hot Topics in the JDD: Hidradenitis Suppurativa

October 27, 2026 — Complex HS surgery is reimbursed less than simple cyst removal

Explaining: Doctors get paid less for the hard HS surgeries than for simple ones — and that is one reason so many of us wait months or years for real surgical care.

The science: Reported by HCPLive from Fall Clinical 2026 (Dr. Harrison Nguyen): complex hidradenitis suppurativa procedures are reimbursed at lower rates than simple cyst removal, despite the greater time, skill, and follow-up HS surgery requires.

Source: HCPLive, Oct 27, 2026

October 22, 2026 — A new biologic in trials for HS

Explaining: More treatments are being studied for HS than ever before. Each new trial is another door that was not there for us ten years ago.

The science: AbbVie's lutikizumab, an IL-1 inhibitor, is in the INTREPID trial program for hidradenitis suppurativa.

Source: AbbVie / trial coverage, Oct 2026

October 21, 2026 — HS care guidelines in the spotlight

Explaining: When the big dermatology organizations publish HS guidance, more doctors learn to recognize HS earlier — and earlier recognition means fewer years of being told it is "just boils."

The science: Coverage of AAD and HS Foundation guidance on hidradenitis suppurativa recognition and management.

Source: AAD / HS Foundation coverage, Oct 2026

What Is HS?

Explaining: HS — hidradenitis suppurativa — is a long-term inflammatory skin disease. It is my body fighting against my body. It is not caused by hygiene. It is not contagious. It is not a sexually transmitted disease. It starts as painful bumps in the places skin rubs together — underarms, groin, under the breasts, the buttocks — and for too many of us it takes years to get a name for it. I have lived it since I was a teenager. This page exists so nobody has to dig for answers the way I did.

The science: HS begins around the hair follicle, where blockage and immune-driven inflammation form deep, painful nodules and abscesses. Over time, lesions can connect under the skin into tunnels (sinus tracts) that drain and scar. Because the disease lives under the surface, surface creams alone are rarely the whole answer — which is exactly why wound care and tracking matter.

The Hurley Stages

Doctors describe HS severity with the Hurley staging system. Different areas of your body can be at different stages at the same time.

Stage 1: Single or multiple abscesses, without tunnels or significant scarring.

Stage 2: Recurrent abscesses with tunnels (sinus tracts) and scarring, in separated areas.

Stage 3: Widespread involvement — multiple connected tunnels and abscesses across a whole area, with extensive scarring.

What HS Can Look and Feel Like

Painful abscesses: Boil-like bumps that can be extremely painful and keep coming back in the same places.

Drainage: Lesions can open and drain, which affects clothing, comfort, and daily life. There is no shame in that — it is the disease, not you.

Tunnels and scarring: Over time, HS can form tunnels under the skin and leave significant scarring.

Flares: Symptoms come in waves. Triggers are different for different people — which is why tracking your own skin is power.

Whole-life impact: HS touches movement, sleep, work, school, relationships, and mental health. It is an invisible disease — you do not have to look sick to be living with something serious.

A Quick Check — Not a Diagnosis

Have you had two or more painful, boil-like bumps in skin-fold areas in the last six months, coming back in the same places? That pattern is worth a conversation with a dermatologist. This check is not a diagnosis — it is a starting point, and starting is everything.

Start Where You Are

Not sure if you have HS? Start with the news and resources on this page, and bring your questions to a dermatologist.

Already diagnosed? The HSKIN 3-step wound-care system and the Queen Bee tracking journal were built for your daily routine.

Supporting someone with HS — or a parent of a teen with HS? You belong in the Hive too. Join the Hive and start with the resources above.

Resources

The HSKIN 3-Step System — The Why

Step 1 — Calcium Alginate: catches the drainage. It turns to gel and lifts off clean.

Step 2 — Sterile Honey Gauze: works under the surface, where HS actually lives.

Step 3 — Hydrocolloid Cover: seals it and protects it, so you can live your life.

Absorb, treat, protect — in that order. Dressings are made to last up to 7 days; on HS skin, we check by day 3. This is not something that cures all in one day — it needs to be a part of your routine. Add this routine to whatever your doctor tells you to do.

The first HSKIN kits are coming soon — a small run. Join the Hive so you do not miss the drop.

Queen Bee Journal — Mom Edition — the HS tracking journal, $98.