What are Piles? Symptoms, Causes & Treatment

Posted On July 21, 2023

If you have recently been diagnosed with piles and are looking for answers like What are piles? What are its symptoms and causes? Who is the best piles doctor in Surat? Then you have landed on the right page. Keep reading till the end to find all the answers.

The anus and rectum are parts of the human body that are generally not talked about and are mostly ignored. But they play an important part in the human digestive system without which we would not be able to throw out solid waste from our body. The digestive system uses contraction and relaxation of muscles to push the food forward into the system. The anus & rectum also follow this process and that’s how a person can control (to an extent) his urge to poop.

What are Piles?

The anus and rectum can get affected by a disorder called Piles or Hemorrhoids. We all have blood vessels inside and around the anus and rectum that play an important role in continence. It is only when these blood vessels get swollen and enlarged, that they get painful and uncomfortable, often leading to rectal bleeding, a condition known as Piles/haemorrhoids.

The blood vessels in the anus are cushioned with spongy tissues that help to close the anus. These anal cushions sometimes develop lumps that are small and round. These small, round, discoloured lumps are Piles. Sometimes, it is even possible to feel them hanging out from your anal canal.

Types of Piles:

Piles can be either internal or external and can be graded according to their size.

Internal Piles: They start from the inside of the anus canal. And they are graded depending on how far they come out from the anal canal.

Piles of the first degree do not come out of the anus but they may bleed
Piles of the second degree come out of the anus when one poops and later slide back inside on their own.
Piles of the third degree have to be pushed inside physically once they come out of the anus
Piles of the fourth degree cannot be pushed back in. They always hang from the anal canal and can become very painful if the blood clots inside of them.

External Piles: External piles develop closer to the anus instead of the anal canal and are extremely painful and itchy. They may also bleed, sometimes, more so if they have blood clots in them.

A person can suffer from internal, external or both piles at the same time.

Symptoms of Piles:

Internal piles do not cause any pain and neither do they have any symptoms. Most of the time, people are not even aware that they have internal haemorrhoids. Internal haemorrhoids may cause painless bleeding which can be seen in the stool, on the toilet or the toilet paper (if you use one). This is known as rectal bleeding.

In the case of external haemorrhoids, symptoms like

Itchy or sore skin around the anus
Painful lumps in and around the anus
Pain or ache in the anus, especially in a sitting position
Bleeding that can be seen in the toilet, on the toilet paper, in the poop
Pain and discomfort after a bowel movement
Frequent urge to poop
Mucus discharge from the anus that can be spotted on the underwear

Symptoms of Piles are not serious, in general, and resolve on their own in most cases.

Causes of Piles:

Piles are caused when the veins in and around the anal canal get swollen. The veins swell due to several reasons:

Any kind of strain on your lower extremities can cause the veins to swell and get inflamed. For example, putting extra pressure while having a bowel movement due to constipation or chronic diarrhoea.
Excess body weight can also cause unnecessary strain on the lower pelvic region causing the veins to swell. Obese people seem to develop piles more often than others.
Piles are commonly seen during pregnancy as well. This is because of the excess pressure on the abdomen. They usually get better after delivery.
The excessive strain caused by lifting heavy objects. Weightlifters usually have to deal with piles as a professional hazard.
Eating foods that lack fibre.
Chronic diarrhoea or constipation

Treatment of Piles:

People suffering from piles look up for ‘piles doctor near me’ but they are unaware of the fact that haemorrhoids usually resolve on their own. It takes around a week for symptoms like pain and bleeding to dissipate. During this time, one can follow some general steps to ease the symptoms. These include:

Drinking more water
Consuming more fibre-rich foods
Soften stools using laxatives
Avoid scrubbing the anus and gently patting with wet towels/tissues to clean the bottom after pooping.

If the symptoms do not resolve after one week, or if they worsen, it’s time to seek the help of a doctor. You should also consider visiting a doctor if the symptoms hamper your sleep and/or daily activities.

Usually, healthcare providers/piles specialists in Surat deal with haemorrhoids in either of the following non-surgical ways:

Infrared coagulation – where a small probe transmitting heat is inserted in the rectum to get rid of the haemorrhoid
Rubber Band Ligation – where a small rubber band is wound around the base of the haemorrhoid to cut off blood supply to the vein.
Electrocoagulation – where an electric current is passed to stop the blood flow to the haemorrhoid.
Sclerotherapy – where a chemical is injected into the swollen veins to get rid of the haemorrhoids.

Sometimes, treating piles needs surgical intervention. The Surgical methods for treating piles are:

Haemorrhoidectomy: prolapsed internal haemorrhoids and large external ones are removed surgically through this procedure.
Haemorrhoid Stapling: The section of tissues containing piles is pulled up higher in the anal canal and is stapled so that it stays there. This will cut off the blood supply to the haemorrhoids and they will dissipate gradually.
HALO: Another surgical procedure that limits the blood supply to the haemorrhoids by closing the arteries using an ultrasound probe. It is also known as Haemorrhoidal Artery Ligation Operation (HALO)

SIDS hospital and research centre is well-equipped with experts and advanced medical equipment, and has treated hundreds of patients with piles surgery in Surat.

Frequently Asked Questions:

How painful is piles surgery?

Surgical procedures like haemorrhoidectomy are painful. The anus area will ache and remain sore for around 4 weeks. However, pain medications are prescribed by the surgeon until the surgical wound heals. However, many new methods like laparoscopic surgery for piles reduce pain and ensure early recovery.

What are the stages of piles?

Piles can be either internal or external and can be graded according to their size. Internal piles are graded as 1st degree, 2nd degree, 3rd degree and 4th-degree piles. : External piles develop closer to the anus instead of the anal canal. A person can suffer from internal, external or both piles at the same time.

What is laparoscopic surgery in piles?

The haemorrhoid stapling surgery is a minimally invasive procedure, also known as laparoscopic surgery for piles, and uses a laparoscopic device made of a flexible tube attached with a camera at its one end that enables the surgeon to have a visual of the anal canal so that the surgeon can perform haemorrhoid stapling surgery. It is less painful and gives faster recovery than open surgery.

Can piles surgery be painless?

The minimally invasive surgery or the laparoscopic surgery of piles is almost painless and can speed up the recovery process of the patient.
Another surgical method is laser treatment. It also ensures that piles surgery is almost painless.
Hemorrhoidal Artery Ligation and Recto Anal Repair (HAL-RAR) is a new procedure and is virtually painless. In this procedure, a miniature Doppler sensor is inserted in the anus to find the arteries feeding the haemorrhoids. The blood supply to these arteries is cut-off by tying them.

SIDS hospital and research centre has the best piles doctor in Surat and performs all kinds of piles surgery in Surat. With its well-equipped operation theatres and advanced medical facilities, SIDS is one of the best hospitals providing painless piles surgery to patients.