Symptoms of Internal Hemorrhoids
The most common symptom of internal
hemorrhoids is bright-red blood covering the stool, on toilet paper, or in the toilet bowl.
Other internal hemorrhoids symptoms may include:
- Feeling of vague anal discomfort
- Feeling of fullness after a bowel movement.
Pain is not a common symptom of internal hemorrhoids. However, an internal hemorrhoid may protrude through the anus outside the body, becoming irritated and painful. This is known as a protruding hemorrhoid. It not treated, a protruding internal hemorrhoid may remain outside the anus. In this case, a person may complain of constant soiling of underwear.
Diagnosing Internal Hemorrhoids
In order to diagnose internal hemorrhoids, your healthcare provider will begin by asking a number of questions (known as the medical history) followed by a physical exam. He or she may also recommend certain tests.
A thorough evaluation and proper hemorrhoids diagnosis by the doctor is important any time bleeding from the rectum or blood in the stool occurs. Bleeding may also be a symptom of other digestive diseases, including
colon cancer or
rectal cancer.
Closer evaluation of the rectum for internal hemorrhoids requires an exam with an anoscope -- a hollow, lighted tube useful for viewing internal hemorrhoids -- or a proctoscope, useful for more completely examining the entire rectum.
To rule out other causes of gastrointestinal bleeding, the doctor may examine the rectum and lower
colon (sigmoid) with
sigmoidoscopy or the entire colon with
colonoscopy. Sigmoidoscopy and colonoscopy are diagnostic procedures that also involve the use of lighted, flexible tubes inserted through the rectum.
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