We have considerable experience in evaluating and treating the diseases that cause rectal pain and bleeding. These symptoms can occur at all ages. Many people attribute these to “hemorrhoids” and do not seek medical attention. This is not advisable because many benign and malignant diseases can cause these symptoms, even in young patients.

The common causes of rectal pain are:

• Rectal abscess or infection
• Thrombosed hemorrhoids
• Anal fissure or fistula

The common causes of rectal bleeding are:

• Hemorrhoids
• Anal fissure
• Benign and malignant neoplasms

Most of these conditions can be addressed in the office or minor surgery room.

This condition refers to an infection in the rectal area, which is deep to the skin and has formed a boil or pus pocket. The treatment is incision and drainage or opening the skin with a knife to drain the pus and allow the infection to heal from the inside out. Some of these can be large and complex, requiring anesthesia in the operating room and the placement of drains, which are removed a few days to weeks later.

A Fistula-in-ano is a tract from inside the anus out to the skin. This forms about half the time after a perirectal abscess and gives the symptoms of creamy drainage around the anus. The treatment is minor surgery to open up the tract and allow it to heal from the inside out.

Hemorrhoids are dilated veins just under the skin of the anus. They can form on the inside and outside. They develop due to persistently elevated pressure within the veins. This is usually due to excessive straining when having a bowel movement or during pregnancy. If they become thrombosed, they swell up and become extremely painful. Nonthrombosed hemorrhoids can become inflamed, causing bleeding or itching and pain.

The medical aspects of treatment involve increasing the fiber in your diet to decrease the straining involved with bowel movements. One should spend as little time on the toilet as possible. Metamucil, fiber-con or citrucel may be needed as a fiber supplement. With this, one should drink 6 to 8 glasses of water a day.

Warm water baths, called sitz baths two or three times a day will help decrease anal irritation. If this doesn't help, your doctor may prescribe an anti-inflammatory hemorrhoidal cream or suppository.

If these do not help, We have a method of reducing the volume of the hemorrhoids in the office by placing rubber bands around them, thus shrinking the tissue. Open hemorrhoidectomy in the operating room is the last resort in eliminating the hemorrhoids and the problems that they may cause.

If you think you may be having hemorrhoidal symptoms which do not resolve, we can perform a thorough evaluation in our office and recommend further treatment, if you need it. Please call 847-433-1060 to schedule your appointment.