Piles – a very tiny little nuisance

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What are Piles/ Haemorrhoids?

Your worry is natural when you see a trail of blood in your stool and a corresponding pain while passing stools and wonder why a common ritual and a daily habit should be painful.

It could be piles. Also known as hemorrhoids, these are due to swelling of veins, muscle, and tissue in the region of the anus, usually when straining to pass a stool. Bleeding accompanied by pain – major symptoms of piles can have anyone rushing to the doctor, but knowing certain facts will help realize that it is not as grave as it seems. Of course, care and precaution are always advisable but the good news is it doesn’t do too much damage and proper medication and at times surgery, can soothe these angry eruptions, very quickly. In fact, first and second-degree hemorrhoids can disappear on their own with just application of a cream or an ointment prescribed by your doctor. Now, first let’s check out all the symptoms:

Check out for some Symptoms related to Piles/Haemorrhoids

• Slimy discharge of mucus,
• Itching and irritation in and around the rectum,
• Leaking feces called skid marks,
• A lump near the anal cavity and
• The feeling that the bowels are completely empty.

Hormonal changes in the body during and after pregnancy can lead to piles, mainly due to increased pressure to the abdomen, but this type of piles will quell rapidly after childbirth. However, you need to inform your doctor about it.

Basically piles can occur to normal individuals anytime, but usually during middle age or old age. It’s mostly the 45-65-year-olds who suffer from piles. Studies also show that 4-30 people out of 100, in the UK suffer from piles.

Piles can be classified into four types

• Grade 1 is symptom-free! No pain may be just a wee bit of bleeding.
• Grade 2 are also not the severe type, they are just prolapsed ones which return to their starting position very soon.
• The third type, Grade 3 may not return to their position after passing of feces but can be pushed back.
• Grade 4 are the ones that cannot be pushed back in.

Simple steps can relieve discomfort to a significant extent. Fuel up on fibre to avoid constipation and have lots of fluids, wear loose underwear as a tight fit would mean rubbing on the piles, clean gently with soft tissue paper, don’t fight/resist the urge to pass stool, don’t strain and do not linger on the toilet seat due to the feeling that there’s yet some more to come!

Seeking treatment? Visit your nearest Gastroenterologist today.