Anal fissure: What helps it heal?

Posted by lisval @lisval, Aug 2, 2022

Hey-wondering if anyone has developed an anal fissure during chemotherapy? What helped it heal? Any advice as it is very painful!

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@adlttl123

My fissures have been cauterized and it helped for a very short time. A fiend of mine had her doctor put sutures in her fissure and she never had any more problems. Not my luck mine started in 1990 and I have suffered with them since. Awful.

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p.p.s. There's a unique issue with my tushie. Drs enlarged my anus/sphincter in 1983 (it was remarkably painful), so for that reason he just can't cut and do stitches. And maybe even any stitches at all are a bad idea because of that surgery which by the way was maddeningly ineffective.

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@mikayla68

p.p.s. There's a unique issue with my tushie. Drs enlarged my anus/sphincter in 1983 (it was remarkably painful), so for that reason he just can't cut and do stitches. And maybe even any stitches at all are a bad idea because of that surgery which by the way was maddeningly ineffective.

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Dear Lord. If you haven’t had this issue God bless you you don’t know what you’re missing. Right?? Pain like no other and I have pain all over from my autoimmune diseases.

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@adlttl123

Dear Lord. If you haven’t had this issue God bless you you don’t know what you’re missing. Right?? Pain like no other and I have pain all over from my autoimmune diseases.

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OMG I know, right?!! I have yet to meet anyone (un)lucky enough to have it enlarged. I was in hospital 5 days, clicking on the morphine as much as they'd let me! Just this local proctologist had this theory and did a few of these surgeries I think. He told me he also had stretched a few assholes (I figure just say what it is!) manually in some way. Ugh. BTW thanks for following along with my 3 replies - appreciated!

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The sphincter muscle needs to be cut so the fissure can then heal. I have had it done twice.

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I've decided to get surgery, it's scheduled for Thursday. Because of a previous surgery many years ago in which the surgeon cut and enlarged my sphincter/anus, the surgeon feels he shouldn't do a traditional fissurectomy and maybe not even stitches. He's going to do Botox + cauterization. What I'm wondering is: What kind of pain, what level of pain, can I expect for the next day or two post surgery? Any feedback would be welcome, thanks!

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@mikayla68

I've decided to get surgery, it's scheduled for Thursday. Because of a previous surgery many years ago in which the surgeon cut and enlarged my sphincter/anus, the surgeon feels he shouldn't do a traditional fissurectomy and maybe not even stitches. He's going to do Botox + cauterization. What I'm wondering is: What kind of pain, what level of pain, can I expect for the next day or two post surgery? Any feedback would be welcome, thanks!

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@mikayla68, thinking of you and wondering how surgery went. I hope you're well.

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@colleenyoung

@mikayla68, thinking of you and wondering how surgery went. I hope you're well.

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When I had the second surgery, the doctor hit my pudendal nerve so for 14-1/2 years I sat on a donut. It is not a pleasant surgery but if done correctly, it does heal.

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@mikaylar

The sphincter muscle needs to be cut so the fissure can then heal. I have had it done twice.

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Hi. Have you had Botox? The surgeon cannot cut the muscle because of a previous surgery by a wackadoo proctologist in 1983 who had a theory that he should enlarge people's anuses. Didn't help my constipation issues either. Anyway, just last week I had Botox + the surgeon cauterized the fissure.

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@mikaylar

When I had the second surgery, the doctor hit my pudendal nerve so for 14-1/2 years I sat on a donut. It is not a pleasant surgery but if done correctly, it does heal.

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Well that sounds perfectly horrid! So sorry. My surgery went well, no weird outcomes thank gawd. The botox can take up to 3 weeks to take effect. The cauterization went fine the surgeon said. Recovery has been hard - I've apparently become an old person LOL. I'm horizontal so much, avoiding sitting on it, so I'm not sure how much it hurts if I try to get back to some kind of normal.

And my poos are messed up and scare me! After having CDiff 4 years ago I've had IBS-mixed. Before surgery, because I was in a C stage, I was taking several doses of metamucil and colace per day, plus 21 grams of fiber as recommended for my age. It was working fine. Yes, carefully measured the fiber too! Anyway, post surgery when I went back to that routine - disaster, I poohed and poohed omg it was awful for a couple of days until I was able to stop what I'd been doing. But I live in fear every morning that a big pooh will ruin everything. I'm not necessarily constipated ... I go every day ... it's just that the first pooh of the day, or the first part of the first pooh forms too large, too wide. I have a first appointment with a nutritionist today to try to figure out what to do. I've tried milk of magnesia and other magnesiums - they work well for a day or two, and then quickly morph into too too much. What a stupid mess.

Don't know if I wrote this elsewhere, but my GI suggested Linzess so I tried it, lasted for 6 horrendous days. The worst diarrhea ever. Almost missed Thanksgiving dinner altogether.

So that's my progress report. Thanks so much for asking!

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@mikayla68

Well that sounds perfectly horrid! So sorry. My surgery went well, no weird outcomes thank gawd. The botox can take up to 3 weeks to take effect. The cauterization went fine the surgeon said. Recovery has been hard - I've apparently become an old person LOL. I'm horizontal so much, avoiding sitting on it, so I'm not sure how much it hurts if I try to get back to some kind of normal.

And my poos are messed up and scare me! After having CDiff 4 years ago I've had IBS-mixed. Before surgery, because I was in a C stage, I was taking several doses of metamucil and colace per day, plus 21 grams of fiber as recommended for my age. It was working fine. Yes, carefully measured the fiber too! Anyway, post surgery when I went back to that routine - disaster, I poohed and poohed omg it was awful for a couple of days until I was able to stop what I'd been doing. But I live in fear every morning that a big pooh will ruin everything. I'm not necessarily constipated ... I go every day ... it's just that the first pooh of the day, or the first part of the first pooh forms too large, too wide. I have a first appointment with a nutritionist today to try to figure out what to do. I've tried milk of magnesia and other magnesiums - they work well for a day or two, and then quickly morph into too too much. What a stupid mess.

Don't know if I wrote this elsewhere, but my GI suggested Linzess so I tried it, lasted for 6 horrendous days. The worst diarrhea ever. Almost missed Thanksgiving dinner altogether.

So that's my progress report. Thanks so much for asking!

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I know exactly what you are saying. Every time I had to have a BM I got totally traumatized. The first time after the surgery I bled and stitches came out. Awful. Try powdered magnesium in the morning in juice or water. You can regulate it by the teaspoon and you will go in 15 minute or so. If you do not go, take more. Easy as that. Your body will tell you. Good luck.

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