Not sure if I have colitis or piles

by karl
(milton keynes, england, uk)

I am not sure if I have colitis or piles as for the past two weeks Ive been passing fresh red blood with my stools which I thought was piles. I had a similar problem last year, but during the last week it seems to be inducing bowel movements which come on suddenly. I have a few minutes to get to the toilet which did not happen last time I had this. I have been going from 4 to 8 times a day seeming to be clusters like 2 or 3 in 2 hours then none for a few hours not regular just sporadic. It can be quite uncomfortable too as I get pain in my rectum when I have an evacuation similar to diarrhoea. My rectum really feels quite tense. My only past medical history is of piles last year. I smoke about 3-7 a day and drink about 1-3 times a week from about 5-40 units. I don’t have any family history and am currently not on any treatments.

Advice on your rectal bleeding

Rectal bleeding such as yours does need further investigation, particularly if it is associated with diarrhea. This could be a form of colitis and the only way of having this checked is to see your doctor. They will be able to refer you for a flexible sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy procedure. Its always important to have this sort of problem checked as occasionally it can be a more serious problem such as bowel cancer. The other thing is, if you know what it is, you can get the right treatment for it too.

If this is piles, the usual history is bleeding on wiping or in the pan, with blood coating the stool. Diarrhea isn’t usually a feature unless you are taking laxatives. It can be associated with anal pain and itch plus sometimes mucus.

Don’t delay, get it checked today.

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