Symptoms of anal fistula

Anal fistula refers to a granulomatous duct formed around the human anus. Because it is located in the anus, any fecal discharge will cause redness, swelling and itching in the anal area of ​​patients with anal fistula. Therefore, in real life, due to the location of the anal fistula, the symptoms of anal fistula are often not easily discovered by people, which eventually leads to the continuous deterioration of the anal fistula.

So, what are the symptoms of anal fistula? If patients with anal fistula want to cure anal fistula as soon as possible and give themselves a healthy body, patients need to pay more attention to the related symptoms of anal fistula. This article introduces the most common symptoms of anal fistula.

Anal fistula refers to the granulomatous duct around the anus, which consists of three parts: the internal opening, the fistula, and the external opening. The internal opening is often located in the lower rectum or anal canal, and there is usually only one of them; the external opening is on the skin around the anus, and there may be one or more of them. It is one of the common rectal and anal canal diseases that does not heal for a long time or recurs intermittently. It can occur at any age, and is more common in young and middle-aged men.

The main symptom is the discharge of a small amount of purulent, bloody, and mucous secretions from the fistula. Larger high-position anal fistulas are not controlled by the sphincter because the fistula is located outside the sphincter, and feces and gas are often discharged. Due to the stimulation of secretions, the anus becomes moist and itchy, and sometimes eczema forms. When the external opening heals and an abscess forms in the fistula, obvious pain may be felt, accompanied by systemic infection symptoms such as fever, chills, and fatigue. The symptoms will be relieved after the abscess ruptures or is incised and drained. The recurrence of the above symptoms is the clinical characteristic of fistula.

During examination, single or multiple external openings can be seen on the perianal skin, which appear as red nipple-like protrusions and discharge pus or purulent and bloody secretions when squeezed. The number of external openings and their relationship to the anus are very helpful in diagnosing anal fistula: the more external openings there are and the farther they are from the anal verge, the more complex the anal fistula is.

The symptoms of anal fistula have been listed in detail for patients with anal fistula in this article. It is recommended that patients with anal fistula should strengthen the collection and mastery of relevant knowledge about the symptoms and treatment of this disease. Only in this way can it help patients with anal fistula to cure anal fistula as soon as possible during the treatment process.