Does bleeding during bowel movements mean I have hemorrhoids? How to check?

It would be terrifying if you suddenly found blood in your stool! Many people worry about whether they have some disease. In fact, blood in the stool may be caused by hemorrhoids or other diseases. How to distinguish them?

1. I have blood in my stool. Is this hemorrhoids?

There are many veins under the mucosa around the anus and rectum. When they become congested, dilated, and bent, they form one or more soft venous masses. Because they form lumps, we generally call them hemorrhoids.

When hemorrhoids rupture or prolapse from the anus, there will be blood in the stool, dripping blood, or spurting bleeding, and something will fall out of the anus. Although the most common disease for bloody stools is indeed hemorrhoids, not all people have hemorrhoids.

In addition, bleeding during bowel movements may also be caused by diseases such as rectal cancer, rectal polyps, rectal prolapse, anal fissure, etc. Among them, differentiation from rectal cancer is very important. When diagnosing hemorrhoids, the possibility of rectal cancer must be excluded to prevent delays in treatment due to misdiagnosis.

2. What are the treatments for hemorrhoids?

Treatments for hemorrhoids include:

(1) Drug treatment: divided into oral medication and topical medication. Domestic hospitals mainly use drugs other than therapeutic drugs, among which suppositories and ointments account for the largest share;

(2) Injection therapy: by injecting a sclerosant, the hemorrhoids shrink;

(3) Infrared coagulation therapy: The principle is the same as injection therapy, which can shrink hemorrhoids;

(4) Rubber band ligation therapy: Rubber bands are used to tie hemorrhoids to block their blood supply, causing ischemia, necrosis, and healing by falling off;

(5) Doppler ultrasound-guided hemorrhoidal artery ligation: blocking the blood supply to hemorrhoids to relieve symptoms;

(6) Surgical treatment: mainly through surgical peeling and excision of hemorrhoids to treat patients who have failed non-surgical treatment.

3. How to choose the right treatment for hemorrhoids?

The symptoms of hemorrhoids mainly include bleeding, hemorrhoid prolapse, anal discomfort and itching. There are many treatment methods, and the appropriate treatment method should be selected according to the type and grade of hemorrhoids.

The following principles should be followed:

(1) Asymptomatic hemorrhoids do not require special treatment, just adjust your lifestyle to avoid aggravation;

(2) For symptomatic hemorrhoids, the focus is on alleviating or eliminating symptoms rather than curing them, and medication is the main treatment.

In the early stages of hemorrhoids or asymptomatic hemorrhoids, general treatment can meet the treatment requirements. Injection therapy and rubber band ligation therapy are effective in treating most hemorrhoids and have become the main treatment methods for hemorrhoids. Surgical treatment requires strict control of indications.