By Herman Villalba, MD Maher A Abbas, MD, FACS, FASCRS Introduction A patient arrives at your office with a chief complaint of hemorrhoids. Is it really hemorrhoids, or is it something else? How are hemorrhoids best treated? And when should you send the patient to see a surgeon? Hemorrhoids have plagued humankind since ancient times and might have even influenced world history. The emperor of F...

BACKGROUND Although hemorrhoids are one of the most common anal diseases among Koreans, risk factors for hemorrhoids have not been well identified. METHODS We analyzed the data from the 4th Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) between 2007 and 2009. Study subjects were 17,228 participants of KNHANES who were aged 19 years or older. Logistic regression analysis was...

■ Rubber band ligation is the preferred office procedure for treatment of grade I/II hemorrhoids that do not respond to medical therapy, and treatment of all grade III hemorrhoids. M ost cases of hemorrhoids can be managed in the primary care setting with simple measures and office procedures, including anoscopy. This paper reviews the advantages, disadvantages, and levels of evidence regarding...

Hemorrhoids are the most common anorectal complaint, and approximately 10 to 20 percent of patients with symptomatic hemorrhoids require surgery. Symptoms of hemorrhoids, such as painless rectal bleeding, tissue protrusion and mucous discharge, vary. The traditional therapeutic strategies of medicine include surgical, as well as non-surgical, treatment. To alleviate symptoms caused by hemorrhoi...

Intersphincteric resection (ISR) is the ultimate sphincter saving procedure for low rectal cancer. Hemorrhoids are a common benign condition. We present and discuss a case of ISR which developed painful edematous hemorrhoids after ISR. A 62-year-old female with low rectal cancer received neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy with successful down staging of tumor before undergoing robot assisted ISR wit...

PURPOSE False-positive (FP) results of fecal immunochemical tests (FITs) conducted in colorectal cancer (CRC) screening could lead to performing unnecessary colonoscopies. Hemorrhoids are a possible cause of FP FIT results; however, studies on this topic are extremely rare. We investigated whether hemorrhoids are associated with FP FIT results. MATERIALS AND METHODS A retrospective study was ...

BACKGROUND Constipation, a low fiber diet, sedentary lifestyle and gravidity are commonly assumed to increase the risk of hemorrhoids. However, evidence regarding these factors is limited. We examined the association between commonly cited risk factors and the prevalence of hemorrhoids. METHODS We performed a cross sectional study of participants who underwent a colonoscopy in a colorectal ad...

Hemorrhoids are common in Western societies. Appropriate assessment and treatment of symptomatic hemorrhoids can substantially reduce morbidity and improve patient well-being. In this article, the clinical presentation, differential diagnoses, and current treatment options, including the CRH-O'Regan banding device, an emerging technology for the anoscopic treatment of symptomatic internal hemor...

Aluminum potassium sulfate and tannic acid injection (ALTA) is a useful and less-invasive treatment for internal hemorrhoids. However, it is not a treatment option for external hemorrhoidal diseases, including mixed hemorrhoids. Distal hemorrhoidectomy with ALTA injection involves surgical resection of external piles, followed by injection therapy on internal piles. We report technical details ...

BACKGROUND Doppler-guided hemorrhoidal artery ligation is a minimally invasive technique for the treatment of symptomatic hemorrhoids that has been applied successfully for grade II and III hemorrhoids but is less effective for grade IV hemorrhoids. Development of a special proctoscope enabled the combination of hemorrhoidal artery ligation with transanal rectoanal repair (mucopexy), which serv...