Anal Fissure Support Forum

Subject: fistula?? April 11th 2008, 10:13 pm

so i've been doing really well lately, keeping up with the MOM every night and having relatively little pain but still the same old annoying "discomfort". i looked down there today for the first time in a long time. as i was getting in there to spread the area open to see the end of the fissure, a little bit of white mucus came out. not much, just a little clear discharge i guess.
the last time i went to the CRS she examined me and couldn't see the fissure, but did see some mucus or pus. she told me she saw it, and she didn't seem concerned so i wasn't. but now i'm doing some research and thinking maybe it could be a fistula at the end of this fissure and that's the reason i've never completely healed. i dread the thought of going back to the dr, but i might have to just for peace of mind. in the meantime...

does anyone know much about fistulas? i've looked on the internet and read some old posts, but want some more information before i get myself all worked up. i'm not having abnormal pain or blood or anything else.. nothing that's had me too concerned in the past month, so there's definitely no infection or abcess.

any info anyone can give me about fistulas (and maybe your own experiences) would be much appreciated! dunno

Subject: Re: fistula?? April 12th 2008, 12:49 am

Juney -

I am sure others will reply here since I have never had a fistula and I don't know much about them. However, I get freaked out sometimes and get paranoid about getting one too. From the research I have done, I think you need an infection/abcess first, and then a fistula somehow forms from that. I try not to worry about these because I have never had a prior infection....does anyone know if this is true or not?

Please get this checked out just in case. If it is something, you will want to nip it in the butt before it gets worse. Keep us updated! I am sure your fine!

Jen

Subject: Re: fistula?? April 12th 2008, 3:04 am

From my own experience , both with the abcess and the fistula, they were really badly painful-even the surgery was a better pain than they were, and you feel kind of ill and like you're going down with flu. But I would say to get it checked out as soon as possible because if it is the beginning of an infection its better to zap it with antibiotics as soon as possible and that might just do the trick and clear it up if you catch it soon enough.
Good luck, I know how worrying it is to get the dreaded fistula! After I had the abcess and my CRS said the word fistula I just freaked out and cried all the way home, but it wasn't really any different to the abcess and I coped ok with that!

Subject: Re: fistula?? April 12th 2008, 6:22 am

I hope everything is OK Juney, I hope this is not a fistula...
I get freaked too, as some of you may have noticed !!!
But i would rather be here and stay informed, i have learnt soo much from this board...

Subject: Re: fistula?? April 12th 2008, 10:36 am

hi juney,

well there are different types of fistulas and i am not sure if there needs to be crazy pain associated with all stages of initial development or while its forming, but since there is a discharge coming out i would suspect something down there is infected.

dano recently had a fistulotomy so he can go into more detail of his experiences.

but never fear, a fistula definitely can be the result of a fissure and all you need is some attention to it in order for it to heal.

fistula is similar to an abcess but it just keeps growing and making tracks in your tissues. so the longer the track or tracks, the more complicated your surgery, situation, and healing can be.

let's just hope it's not a fistula and you are catching this situation right at the start.

good luck.
_________________
Macrobiotics can change the way you deal with your fissure.
www.macrobiotics.co.uk

Subject: Re: fistula?? April 12th 2008, 2:47 pm

it just makes me so mad that the dr, even though she noticed the pus or mucus or whatever, never suggested anything else. i think they're so tired of me at kaiser that they just want to get me thru my appt and send me home. i'm also pissed that i had 2 LIS surgeries and the drs never suggested something else might be the cause. i am totally freaking myself out and i'm gonna call first thing on monday for the soonest appt. i'm quitting my job to go back to school soon so i've gotta figure out my insurance situation and that sucks too but i need this taken care of.

thank you so much everyone for your wise words and encouragement!! i'm hoping to hear from dano too since i know he had a similar case. thank you all!

Admin Age : 38 Joined : 23 Jan 2007 Posts : 3029

I just had surgery for a fistula two weeks ago. I think I mentioned it on another thread. I had this area that abscessed and the CRS who did the hemorrhoid surgery dismissed my concerns. Well, it got worse so I had to go 4 hours to Wake Forest to see the CRS of the university hospital and he confirmed I did have an abscess. He put me on antibiotics but when I went back the next week it had turned into a fistula.

If it is an abscess only, you have some discharge and then it heals. A fistula just keeps producing discharge. I would (well my husband mostly) would drain it and the next day it would come back. It was very painful though. I don't know if that is uniform for all cases at all but it could be that area has already been traumatized by the hemorrhoidectomy. The new CRS also checked internally when I was under GA to see if I might have Chron's disease. He did not see any inflammation so he does not think I have that but he said one of the symptoms of the disease is having a non healing fissure.

I wonder if you can put a little dab of neosporin and go see the CRS. Does your work have any other health plans besides Kaiser?

I am glad you aren't in horrific pain. When I think about the weeks I needlessly suffered with the abscess I just shudder. I feel like I have post-traumatic stress disorder in a way.

Hang in there!
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Subject: Re: fistula?? April 12th 2008, 10:38 pm

Lecia -

How are you doing? Is the pain more managable? How are your hemmies? Are they better despite the fistula? I just want to let you know that I think about you everyday and always pray for you - that goes for you too Juney!

Jen

Admin Age : 38 Joined : 23 Jan 2007 Posts : 3029

Thanks Jen, my hemmies are fine as the evil one was removed in January. But it is healing from that hemorrhoid surgery that necessitated another surgery to repair a fistula that is holding me back. Thank you for your prayers. It is very slow going and I need all the help I can get!

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Subject: Re: fistula?? April 13th 2008, 3:18 pm

everytime i push on the skin area near where the fissure was there is a small amount of white pus (i usually do this in the morning and evening each day). i'm going to call the dr first thing tomorrow morning (they're not open on the weekend unfortunately). i don't know if i'm just more aware of it now or what, but the discomfort has definitely increased since i noticed this. not to mention, the pus really scares me!

i'm in a horrible position now b/c i've given notice to quit my job next month and i'll be returning to school for a certificate program this summer. i'm going to try to get coverage on my own, but i won't have any time for surgery then, as i can't miss any classes. i'm a miserable wreck right now, not knowing what this could be. it's been relatively smooth sailing the past couple months and now this all the sudden. it never ends!!!

i don't have any exit wound on the outside of the anus, which from what i've read is common for a fistula. the area where the pus comes from is just where the fissure used to be (perhaps still is). when i push on the remaining skin from the skin tag, that's when the pus comes out. i'm so angry that the crs noticed it but just dismissed it last time i saw her, 2 months ago!

lecia, what did yours look like? i don't even know what an abcess looks like!

Admin Age : 38 Joined : 23 Jan 2007 Posts : 3029

Mine looked like a blister and there were times I could see some white underneath the skin. Maybe yours is a simple case that will respond well to antibiotics and you won't need surgery.

I know it is a let down after feeling better and more in control of this to have a new symptom but you are finding it quickly and it may not be anything complicated.

Are you going to get insurance through your works COBRRA program? If you are in school a lot of schools offer some kind of health insurance program though I know you are more concerned with missing school. I bet this will all be sorted out quicker than you think.
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Subject: Re: fistula?? April 13th 2008, 5:20 pm

Juney, I'm so sorry you've got to go through this. Just the words fistula and abcess scare the life out of us! But really, its not as bad as it sounds. You've gone through all this pain with the fissure, so you know exactly what pain is! Maybe once they've sorted it out it will be the end of all your problems with this thing once and for all.
Good luck!

Subject: Re: fistula?? April 14th 2008, 12:36 am

Juney ,

, just not fair, what can I say Sad

... You just found peace of mind using that MOM to help you with pain and now this Evil or Very Mad

. I don't know dear friend - some days I also think that there is no end to butt problems - but we have to persevere and move forward until we win !!!

I wish you good and productive CRS appointment ! Let us know what happened ASAP comfort

Subject: Re: fistula?? April 14th 2008, 3:03 am

Just want to wish you Goodluck Juney
Hope everything goes Ok today
x

Subject: Re: fistula?? April 14th 2008, 11:18 am

thanks everyone! i've made an appt w/ a specialist outside of kaiser for tomorrow. it's gonna be expensive but i'm curious to see what they'll say. i'm also still planning to call kaiser as soon as they open this morning.

lecia - i was planning to try and get individual kaiser coverage after i quit my job, but with the amount of problems i've had this year i'm worried i won't get approved. we'll see...i'll keep everyone posted! right now i'm trying to stay positive but it's so hard not to imagine worst case scenarios ... pale