Remicade (infliximib) is a biological medication used to treat psoriasis. A recent study looked at treating hidradenitis suppurativa with Remicade and the results were mixed but showed that further study is warranted.
Hidradenitis suppurativa is a chronic, scarring disease that affects the sweat glands. More severe cases involve deep abscesses that create extensive scarring. Many times antibiotics don't work and the only way to definitively treat hidradenitis is to remove a large area of skin, then allow the area to heal from the inside out sometimes requiring skin grafts.
In this study Remicade did reduce inflammation and significantly improve hidradenitis lesions. On the other hand, one person dropped out of the study because of an adverse effect. The study size was too small to definitively conclude that Remicade treats hidradenitis but it did show that further study is warranted.
