Surgery may be necessary for patients with severe metastatic cutaneous Crohn's disease, a rare condition causing granulomatous skin inflammation not connected to the digestive tract, according to a retrospective case series from a tertiary center in the United Kingdom.
A multidisciplinary team, including colorectal and plastic surgeons, treated 11 adult female patients (median age 37) between 2019 and 2024. At 6 and 12 months, 45.5% had complete wound healing; by final follow-up (median 36 months), 81.8% healed.
Most patients received combined medical and surgical therapy, including proctocolectomy with perineal reconstruction. For persistent lesions, adjuncts like topical tacrolimus, hyperbaric oxygen therapy, and re-excision were used.
The authors emphasize that multidisciplinary care, preoperative optimization, and structured long-term follow-up are critical for improving outcomes in this challenging condition.