What is Hemorrhoid?
Hemorrhoids, also known as piles among the public, are a disease that reduces the quality of life by causing pain, bleeding and discharge.
In its medical sense, hemorrhoids are defined as the swelling that occurs when the cushions that occur due to the expansion of the small arteries and veins that are present in normal people in the anus sag outward and swell.
It is very common in our society. 8 out of every 10 people have hemorrhoids. Half of them have no complaints. This disease, which is frequently seen between the ages of 45-65, is rarely seen before the age of 20.
This disease is divided into two as internal and external. While internal hemorrhoids do not hurt, external hemorrhoids can be quite painful. In external hemorrhoids, sometimes a clot settles in the enlarged veins (Thrombosed Hemorrhoids) and severe pain, hard swelling and redness occur. Internal hemorrhoids are evaluated according to four different stages.
Hemorrhoid Stages
1st Stage: Hemorrhoids manifest themselves with bleeding. Small bleedings are in a way that will dirty toilet paper or sometimes in the form of drops. Hemorrhoids do not prolapse at this stage. However, they can be seen with rectoscopy.
2nd Stage: Hemorrhoids prolapse out with defecation and then regress on their own.
3rd Stage: Hemorrhoidal breasts have now come out of the anus. They can only be pushed back into the anus by pushing with a finger. Edema occurs very often and causes pain.
4th Stage: This is the stage where hemorrhoids prolapse out of the anus. The breasts are usually large and wet. Among the complaints is that underwear gets dirty due to not being fully cleaned after defecation, and pain may also occur while sitting.
Hemorrhoid (Pile) Symptoms
• Pain or burning sensation during defecation
• Fresh red bleeding from the anus
• Swelling, discharge or wetness in the anus
• Itching in the anus
• Irregular defecation
Hemorrhoid (Pile) Causes
The main causes are constipation, prolonged straining and spending a long time on the toilet. In addition, other diseases such as aging, pregnancy and childbirth can also cause hemorrhoids. Excessive fatigue of the person, sitting for a long time or standing for a long time can cause this condition.
What Should Be Done to Prevent Hemorrhoids?
– Eat healthy and do not skip meals.
– Eat mostly vegetables and fruits, soften your stool and ensure that it passes without causing any harm.
– Avoid spicy, hot foods, tomatoes and pickles.
– Try to defecate once a day in the morning and have a complete evacuation. If possible, go to the toilet half an hour after breakfast and relieve yourself without straining and be careful not to stay in the toilet for more than 5 minutes.
– Applying a hot shower to the anus after using the toilet will also reduce swelling in this area and edema in the breasts, which will reduce the patient’s complaints.
– Do sports, especially pilates that work the abdominal and pelvic muscles. Be careful as sports such as weightlifting, weight lifting, cycling and spinning may increase your discomfort.
– If you work by sitting or standing for a long time, take a 10-minute break every two hours.
Hemorrhoid (Pile) Treatment
The treatment primarily aims to regulate bowel movements. Constant constipation or diarrhea makes it difficult to heal hemorrhoids. Medication and cream treatment is mostly applied for those in the 1st and 2nd stages. Cream generally prevents pain, swelling and burning. In addition, massaging the problematic area with a small amount of cream containing nitroglycerin can also reduce pain and burning. These creams can relax and soothe the anal muscles. However, these nitroglycerin creams can cause serious headaches.
Sitz baths performed by putting warm water in any tub after defecation are perhaps the most effective method in reducing the complaint. It is not necessary to put any medication in the sit bath. The sit bath should not exceed 5-10 minutes. Sitting for longer periods can increase swelling.
Strangulation treatment or vascular band ligation is another developed treatment method. This method is applied to bleeding internal hemorrhoids. In this method, a rubber is placed around the hemorrhoidal bulb and the bulb is left to decay. This method, which is painless and does not require anesthesia, is also very effective.
The Most Effective Treatment Method: Hemorrhoid Surgery. However, research shows that only 5- 10 percent of hemorrhoids require surgical intervention. External hemorrhoids are not treated unless they cause problems. The stage of the disease is examined by the protrusion of the breasts and the treatment is planned accordingly. Hemorrhoid treatment can also be performed with classical surgery, i.e. surgery, depending on the development of the disease.
Hemorrhoid surgery, which is more preferred for hemorrhoids in the 3rd and 4th stages, is performed under general anesthesia or regional anesthesia with special devices. Laser treatment can also be applied for the treatment of third-stage hemorrhoids. The surgery time is also quite short in this method and the post-operative period is painless. However, the most effective treatment method for the disease is classical hemorrhoid surgery, and the probability of the disease recurring after the surgery is less than in operations performed with laser.