Anal fissure

Efficacy of egg yolk and nitroglycerin ointment as treatments for acute anal fissures: A randomized clinical trial study

Background

Acute anal fissure as a common disease in society has several etiologies and manifestations such as severe anal pain and bleeding. Nitroglycerin ointment 0.2% is the most common topical treatment used. The most common side effect of nitroglycerin is headache, which is annoying for patients and often leads to discontinuation of the drug.

Objective

Comparison of egg yolk as a natural substance with analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties and minimal side effects with nitroglycerin ointment in the treatment of acute anal fissure.

Methods

This randomized clinical trial was carried out during a 10-day period in the Gastroenterology clinic of Ghaem Hospital, Mashhad, Iran (year 2015). 126 patients who filled the inclusion criteria were enrolled. The patients were randomly divided into two groups. Nitroglycerin ointment (0.2%) was applied by patients in the first group, twice daily for 10 days. For the second group, one egg yolk once a day was administered rectally up to 10 days. The pain and bleeding severity were recorded every two days up to 10 days after finishing the treatment course, based on visual scale

Results

The results showed that egg yolk caused a significant reduction in pain and bleeding compared with nitroglycerin (p<0.05). At the beginning of the study, the difference in pain intensity between the two groups was not statistically significant (p-value = 0.25). However, it became significant in the following days. Changes in the frequency of rectorrhagia were also significant in both groups, showing a major decrease in the number of rectorrhagia cases (p<0.001).

Conclusion

Egg yolk is more efficient than nitroglycerin in the treatment of acute anal fissure. In addition, lack of any side effects results in the completion of the treatment course by the patients.

Trial Registration

The trial was registered at the Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials (http://www.irct.ir) with the Irct ID: IRCT2015050718915N3.

Funding

This work was supported by a grant from the Vice Chancellor of Research of Mashhad University of Medical Sciences.

The effects of topical application of metronidazole for treatment of chronic anal fissure: A randomized, controlled pilot study

BACKGROUND

Chronic anal fissures (CAFs) rarely heal with conservative management. Because they are associated with strong anal sphincter tone, most treatment aim to reduce anal pressure. Although infections can cause fissures, as can traumatic injury to the anal canal, antimicrobial treatment is not recommended. In a previous study, we reported identifying a wide spectrum of pathogenic microorganisms in the bases of CAFs, anaerobic bacteria being present in half the cases. We postulated that microbial colonization delays healing of CAF and aimed to determine whether decreasing the bacterial load with topical antibacterial treatment accelerates fissure healing.

METHODS

We cultured fecal samples and swabs from the bases of CAFs in 103 patients. Patients in whose samples anaerobic bacteria were identified (47 patients) were then invited to participate in a prospective randomized clinical trial comparing topical metronidazole with conventional treatment. The primary endpoint was fissure healing confirmed on anoscopy. Secondary endpoints of maximum pain on defecation assessed by visual analog scale, maximum anal resting pressure, and rectal pH were recorded on entry and at 10, 21, and 28 days.

RESULTS

The CAFs were colonized by mixtures of gram-positive/gram-negative anaerobic bacteria or gram-negative aerobic monocultures. Patients with anaerobic bacteria in their swabs who received topical metronidazole treatment experienced rapid relief of pain and anal sphincter spasm along with enhanced fissure healing (95.6 % healing rate compared with 70.8 % in the control group, p = 0.048).

CONCLUSION

Topical antimicrobial treatment can be effective in patients with CAF provided the relevant microorganisms are correctly identified.

Chronic anal fissure: common aetiopathogenesis, with special attention to sexual abuse

BACKGROUND

Chronic anal fissures represent 15% of proctologic consultations, although their aetiopathogenesis is unclear and multifactorial. This study aims to identify the aetiopathogenesis, risk factor of recurrence after lateral subcutaneous internal anal sphincterotomy and existing correlation with sexual abuse, as sexual abuse accounts for over 21% of anal fissures.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

We retrospectively studied 80 cases of surgical (n = 54) and medical (n = 26) patients known with chronic anal fissure over eight months. We built an original questionnaire referring to the NorVold Abuse Questionnaire. Sixty cases were interviewed with only twenty filling the questionnaire themselves.

RESULTS

Among the aetiological factors observed, as reported by these patients, we underlined chronic constipation 51 (64%), postoperative haemorrhoidectomy 15 (19%), sexual abuse 15 (19%), vaginal delivery and hysterectomy 10 (13%), traumatic anal sex 10 (13%), digital anal examination 4 (5%), anti-inflammatory non-steroid suppository 3 (4%), asthma with chronic cough 3 (4%). The recurrence rate reached 39% (31 cases, 13/26 (50%) in the medical group, against 18/54 (33%) in the surgical group. The 4/15 (27%) of sexual abuse happened in adulthood and 6/15 (40%) never disclosed this information.

CONCLUSION

Sexual abuse is a significant aetiological factor of chronic anal fissures and it is to be suspected in cases of recurrence after anal sphincterotomy. For such cases, a multidisciplinary treatment is crucial to improve the prognosis of the disease. We recognise that the causality is difficult to prove and we cannot confirm that every sexually abused person could inevitably develop chronic anal fissure.

Nonsurgical approaches for the treatment of anal fissures

Chronic anal fissure (CAF) is usually associated with internal anal sphincter spasm, the relief of which is central to provide fissure healing. The treatment for CAF has undergone a transformation in recent years from surgical to medical. Both the approaches share the common goal of reducing the spasm. Though surgical treatment has a high success rate, it can permanently impair fecal continence in a large number of patients. Smooth muscle relaxation seems to be a novel way by which more than 60% of the patients can be cured with the topical use of the agents. This treatment is in addition to the normalization of stools mostly. Smooth muscle relaxation is well tolerated, can be administered on an outpatient basis, does not cause any lesion of the continence organ, and subsequently, does not lead to any permanent latent or apparent fecal incontinence. This review encompasses various agents that are used for smooth muscle relaxation. In addition, it describes various clinical studies reported in the literature with their success rates and side effects.