Rectal (anal) fistula

[sdcabincrew74]

Anyone ever have one or have surgery to fix it?  I am facing it.....any info appreciated.

[Eldon]

No I have not. But, good luck and best wishes.

[sdcabincrew74]

Thanks Eldon!  Seriously folks, I am facing surgery, these are semi common in HIV dudes....no one has had one?

[emeraldize]

SD: Have you seen this info? http://www.fascrs.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=1        Em

[sdcabincrew74]

Yeap, that is what I have got and that is the surgery they need to do.  I have read both good and bad things about it and was hoping someone on here had some personal insight, so to speak.

[heartforyou]

SD,

A ( negative) friend of mine had one removed.
It all healed well, after some initial discomfort.

Good luck

Herman

[aztecan]

Hey SD,
I know someone who had one of these. Apparently it was quite incomfortable prior to treatment.

His cleared up just fine after the surgery.

When will you have the procedure done?

HUGS,

Mark

[sdcabincrew74]

Hey Mark,

Well, I have been uncomfortable for a year.  It has taken that long to finally figure out what the hell is going on.  I am meeting with a colon/rectal surgeon next week and planning surgery for when I get back from Italy on the 8th of Feb.  I am not looking forward to the healing process.  I do not want to be incontinent nor loose, so to speak.  Just freaked.

Thanks!

[randym431]

I had one back in 1998. Per hiv days and not hiv related. So I'll spill my guts with my experience for ya...

I got food poisoning from a TV dinner back then and had terrible squirts for 3 days and thats when the god awful pain started. I think mine was just stress on the innards from the bad food and the constant squirts those 3 days.

ANyway, like with you, it took me NINE MONTHS to get properly diagnosed by a doctor. It was truly hell on earth for me. The pain was just awful, day after day after a bowel movement. Then the pain lasted 12 hours after till it finally calmed down, that is... till the next bowel movement. When I had to have a bowel movement, knowing the pain to follow, it was just like sitting there looking at my hand with an axe in the other hand and deciding when you were going to chop off your other hand. What I mean is knowing this terrible pain was to follow.
And the doctors. What a nightmare. One figured out I was gay from being over 40 and never married. He suggested the pain (not knowing then the cause) was because I was gay and suggested I get tested. THATS medical health care in the midwest for ya.
So I got tested anyway and was then neg in 1997. So on to the next step....

So this same doctor had me go thru every test for colon cancer. Every test came back normal so cancer was ruled out. He finally gave up, had no idea of the cause of pain, and told me to start a high fiber diet...goodbye.

So I suffered several more months as things got worse. The pain was so bad on a daily basis I lost 30 #s and considered taking my own life rather than live with this nightmare pain daily. It was that bad.

Then at work they changed med insurance and I had a new doctor on the list I never seen before or knew about in my area. There were only TWO that specialized in this area. And the one had given me the kiss off after finding nothing and doing ever test under the sun.

So this new doctor was actually a real old guy that had been around for years and was about to retire that next summer. He was really old.
So nine months had gone by since my first pain started by now.
I went to see this new doctor (the old guy). He did a visual examine with a little scope in office. Took just 5 minutes. Found the problem right away. Told me what was involved with fixing it and how long I could expect to be off work. Every thing he said was right on the button.

I went in for surgery. It was out patient. He did the surgery and also stuffed all kinds of packing up "there" for it to heal.
He said to do sits baths 20 min a day, three times a day and after 3 days the packing would work its way out and with my first bowel movement.
I had a spinal and was not put clear out for the surgery, so I was semi awake. No pain during surgery at all, even getting the spinal was painless. Then I rested in recovery for 2 hours and was sent home with pain pills. The doctor also said the spinal (or whatever else they used for pain during the surgery) would last some 10-11 hours on its own. So when I got home, I felt great!!!!! No pain at all.

But my BIG mistake was not taking a pain pill BEFORE they spinal wore off. So 11 hours to the minute the pain hit and I freaked out. I called the doctor at 1am, woke him up, and said I was in bad pain. He ask if I had taken any pain pills yet and I said no. I realized how dumb I was as he said to take a pain pill. I don’t know why I hadn’t, I guess I was in no pain after surgery so I thought I'd have no pain. Anyway, I took a pill and the pain did subside a lot. I took pain pills a few times through out the next day and that was all I needed. After one day on pain pills, the pain was pretty much gone and I did not take anymore.

Then after a few days the first bowel movement came along and I was SHOCKED when it was painless. Just a little scratchy but not painful at all. First time in nine months, no pain. And this was just a few days after surgery. Man oh man was I happy beyond words. FINALLY my nightmare of nine months of pain and doctors was over.

A few follow up visits to the GOD SENT old doctor, and I was good as new. I ask if this would ever come back, out of the fear of it happening again, and he said no. Very rare.

Sorry to go on so, but I wanted to give you a real life experience and let you know the pain (not really pain, more just discomfort) afterwards will be nothing like the pain you're probably going thru now, pre surgery. My only advice is, after surgery you will feel great with no pain because of the pain med they give you during surgery. But don’t do like me and wait too long to start your pain pills. That was my only big mistake. And like I said, I only needed the pills a 24 hours after the surgery anyway, then I felt fine without.

The fix is much less painful than the problem, so don’t worry. Sounds like you too finally found a good doctor that knows his stuff. SHOCKING how many out there DO NOT! And put you thru more hell for months, then send you away unresolved.
Don’t worry. You'll do just fine...

PS. I was told to expect to be off work for two-three weeks to heal (no lifting). I actually felt good enough to bo back to work after only one week, but took the three (it was paid) cause I wanted a little vacation away from working anyway. Dont tell my boss 

[sdcabincrew74]

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!

That is the kind of experience I needed to hear about.  I knew I could not be the only one!!!