|
Hemorrhoids: What Your Doctor May Tell You
by: Sue Bristol, R.N. Your doctor tells you that your hemorrhoids are severe enough that in order to reduce the symptoms you are going to need "a procedure". The words we all hate to hear. However, sometimes it's necessary to take aggressive action in order to get your life back or to minimize the risk of complications. It's not something you need to worry about. It is estimated that as many as half of all people have hemorrhoids to some extent at one time in their lives. The encouraging aspect to that statistic is that the physicians who do "the procedure" usually have a great deal of experience. And, it's a fact of life that whatever we do, the more often we do it, the better we will get. That dictum applies to making pies and tying off hemorrhoids! So, what are the options? 1.Incision and clot removal. This is an out-patient procedure for a thrombosed hemorrhoid, that is, one that has developed a clot. A numbing medicine is injected, a small incision is made over the clot, and it is removed. 2. Tissue destruction. The hemorrhoidal tissue is subjected to heat, cold, radiowaves, low voltage electric current, lasers, clotting or scarring agents, or chemicals to destroy the hemorrhoids. 3. Rubber band ligation. Bands are inserted through the anus into the rectum using a lighted instrument (anoscope). The bands are applied around the hemorrhoids in order to cut off the blood supply. The tissue dies and falls off. 4. Stapling. This is a surgical technique generally used to treat internal hemorrhoids that have prolapsed, or fallen, outside the anus. In this procedure, loose tissue is removed and the remaining area around the hemorrhoids is stapled into place in order to prevent prolapse. 5. Hemorrhoidectomy. This is the most effective means of treating the hemorrhoids. Some people never respond adequately to more conservative approaches and require the surgical removal of the hemorrhoids. This is a major surgical procedure and will require a recovery period of 2-4 weeks before normal activities can be resumed. All of these procedures have positives and negatives. Ask your doctor to explain why he is recommending one technique over another. Ask him to explain risks and how likely they are to occur. Ask him what other options you have. He should be able to give you literature which has pictures and descriptions of exactly what he is going to do. Hopefully by the time you are sitting across the desk from the surgeon, you have made a significant effort to alleviate the symptoms of your hemorrhoids by trying various approaches at home. You have changed your diet to include more fiber and less "junk", you have increased your water intake, you have used diet and stool softeners to reduce constipation, you have changed your bowel habits, you've lost weight, you've exercised, and all of the other measures we've talked about before. It may well be that at this time, the most reasonable next step is a surgical or non-surgical procedure. If that is the case, enter into this phase with optimism and expectation of good results. Do whatever the surgeon tells you to do so that you recover well and never have to deal with hemorrhoids again! Happy hemorrhoid-free life!
Do you want to learn more about getting rid of your hemorrhoids? If so, download my brand new free e-book "Getting Rid of Hemorrhoids" here. It will teach you what you can do to avoid seeing the doctor.
HemorrhoidCure101.com
Sue Bristol, R.N.
|
