What are the Signs & Symptoms?
Some of the commonly occurring signs and symptoms of piles (haemorrhoids)include:
- Bleeding after a bowel movement (bright red blood)
- Prolapse of a pile through the anus
- Mucus discharge after a bowel movement
- Sore, inflamed and itchy anus
- Sensation that the bowels are not emptied completely
- Sensitive or painful lump near the anus
The symptoms usually depend on the location of the piles in and around the anus. Piles that lie inside your rectum do not cause any discomfort,but bleeding may occur when they are irritated or while straining to pass stools. Sometimes, an internal haemorrhoid is pushed through the anus during straining, which may cause pain and irritation.
External piles may bleed and itch when they are irritated. These may also become severely inflamed, swollen and painful if a blood clot forms. The formation of blood clots in haemorrhoids is called perianal haematoma or thrombosed external haemorrhoid. External pilesmay form skin tags (painless soft tissue) at the edge of the anus, making it difficult to clean the anal region after a bowel movement. This increases the probability of skin infections.
Rectal bleeding may be a symptom of other conditions. Some of the symptoms such as passing black or maroon stools or blood clots may indicate bleeding at other locations in your digestive tract. In such cases, your doctor may order diagnostic tests to rule out other conditions.
