Your digestive tract ends with your anus — a 3-4 cm segment of muscle, tissue, and nerves through which feces leaves your body. Your anus is attached to the portion of your large intestine called the rectum, an approximately six-inch portion that stores feces temporarily.
When your anus is inflamed and irritated, the pain can be excruciating, particularly when you defecate. The cause of the pain may be something relatively benign, such as hemorrhoids. However, anal pain may also be a sign of a sexually transmitted disease (STD), cancer, or another serious condition.
Unfortunately, anal pain is more common than reported. Many patients are embarrassed to bring up anal pain with their physician.
At Colon and Rectal Surgeons of Greater Hartford, our expert physicians and surgeons diagnose and treat all kinds of anal pain, both benign and serious. Get relief, an answer, and treatment at our offices in Bloomfield, and South Windsor, Connecticut.
What are the signs that anal pain is serious? Following are four signs you can’t afford to ignore.
Anal pain that prevents you from going through your normal daily routine, or interrupts your sleep, needs investigation. Your inflammation and pain may be due to an inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), such as ulcerative colitis (UC) or Crohn’s disease.
Other potential diagnoses may include hemorrhoids, fissures, or fistulas. Fissures are tears in the anal skin, and fistulas are tracts that may develop in the anal region.
Occasional anal pain may be due to straining while defecating or minor hemorrhoids. However, any pain that persists for more than a few days should be investigated.
One warning sign that your pain might be associated with a serious condition is if it gets worse. Unrelenting or worsening anal pain could be a sign of anal cancer.
Tumors, hemorrhoids, and fissures can all cause anal bleeding. Anal bleeding is never normal and shouldn’t be ignored.
You might also have other types of discharge, including pus. Discharge — particularly if it’s foul-smelling — could be a sign of an STD. Treatment might be as simple as a course of antibiotics to clear the infection. Ignoring an STD can lead to serious complications.
If it hurts too much to poop, you need to see a doctor. It’s essential that you eliminate on a regular basis. Holding stool for long periods of time can cause more pain, and worsen constipation.
If you’ve tried to use laxatives or other methods to facilitate elimination and they haven’t worked, contact us to get to the root of the problem..
When you come to us with anal pain, we first take a complete medical history and conduct a thorough examination. We may also order tests, such as X-ray, CT scans, or colonoscopy, to look inside your anus, rectum, and large intestine to try to find the cause of your anal pain..
Once we know the cause of your anal pain, we devise a treatment plan to help you feel more comfortable and defecate properly. Treatments, of course, depend on the condition behind your pain. Whenever possible, we recommend lifestyle changes before any more invasive treatments.
Get relief from anal pain by calling our expert team at our office nearest you (Bloomfield, South Windsor, Connecticut today. You can also contact us online.
