Hemorrhoid treatment in Slavuta

How the proctologist chooses treatment

First the doctor checks whether your symptoms really come from hemorrhoids. Bleeding and discomfort can also be caused by an anal fissure, polyps, inflammatory bowel disease or tumors, and these cannot be told apart by eye. So the proctologist asks about your symptoms and bowel habits, examines the anal area and does a digital rectal exam. To make the diagnosis and determine the grade, the doctor always examines the anal canal with an anoscope. If needed, they will order a sigmoidoscopy or a colonoscopy. A colonoscopy is usually recommended from the age of 45–50, with a change in bowel habits, unexplained weight loss, anemia, or if a relative has had bowel cancer.

Internal hemorrhoids have four grades: at the first they bleed but do not come out; at the second they come out and go back on their own; at the third they have to be pushed back by hand; at the fourth they stay outside all the time. External hemorrhoids sit under the skin around the anus. How to recognize hemorrhoids early is described in the article early signs of hemorrhoids.

Treating hemorrhoids without procedures

At any grade, treatment starts with changes in diet and habits: more fiber from vegetables, fruit, porridge and bran, enough water, not straining and not sitting on the toilet for more than a few minutes, and more movement. The doctor adds medicines: suppositories or creams, remedies that reduce swelling and inflammation, or stool softeners. Warm sitz baths are sometimes recommended. Which remedy suits you, for how long and at what dose, the doctor decides after the exam. Without soft, regular bowel movements hemorrhoids grow again, so these habits are needed after procedures too.

A pharmacy cream often relieves itching and pain within a few days, but enlarged hemorrhoids do not shrink from it. Some topical remedies contain steroids, and they must not be used for longer than the instructions allow without a doctor’s advice.

When minimally invasive methods or surgery are needed

If diet, habits and medicines do not help, the proctologist offers minimally invasive procedures for first-, second- and third-degree hemorrhoids. Viva Clinic prefers such methods, and the doctor decides which one suits you after the exam. Surgery is considered at later stages, when the hemorrhoids stay outside, are very large or other methods have not helped. A thrombosed external hemorrhoid, a firm painful lump that suddenly appears near the anus, is treated separately: depending on how much time has passed, the doctor prescribes medicines and monitoring or suggests a small procedure to remove the clot. The methods used in proctology and how they differ are described in the article how hemorrhoids are treated at different stages.

If after a procedure the pain gets worse, you develop a fever or find it hard to pass urine, see a doctor the same day. Do not wait for a planned appointment either if severe pain and a firm, painful lump suddenly appear near the anus, or if a hemorrhoid comes out and cannot be pushed back. Call an ambulance on 103 if the bleeding is heavy or will not stop (the water in the toilet turns red, large clots come out), or if you feel weak, dizzy or pale with it.

Tests and treatment at one clinic

The exam, anoscopy, sigmoidoscopy, colonoscopy (including under anesthesia) and ultrasound are done at Viva Clinic, and lab tests are processed at our own Diagnost-Lab laboratory at 32 Sobornosti St. So you do not need to travel to Kyiv, Lviv or Khmelnytskyi for hemorrhoid treatment. Empty your bowels before the exam; the administrator will explain how when you book. For a paid appointment you can choose a male or female doctor. The consultation with a Viva Clinic proctologist and treatment are paid, and a colonoscopy is free with an electronic referral from your family doctor.