Internal Hemorrhoids
There are two kinds of hemorrhoids: internal and external.
Internal hemorrhoids are those which can only be examined by a
doctor. Internal hemorrhoids are caused when the tissue
supporting the veins in the anal canal weakens, and the swollen
veins and tissue can bulge into the anal canal. Symptoms of
internal hemorrhoids include bleeding during or after bowel
movements, itching or a burning sensation in the anus and rectal
pain before, during or after bowel movements.
In summary, the symptoms of internal hemorrhoids include the
following: Rectal bleeding. Like external hemorrhoids, bright
red spots of blood may appear on toilet paper after a bowel
movement. Unlike, external hemorrhoids, blood spots may appear
on toilet paper if one wipes the anus before a bowel movement
and in addition, blood may appear on individual pieces of stool.
Because the bleeding takes place internally, small amounts of
blood may leak from the anus even in the absence of a bowel
movement and there is the possibility that the stool will pick
up small amounts of blood on its way out of the large intestine.
An itching sensation inside the anal canal. This is a different
form of itching commonly associated with hemorrhoids. Because
these hemorrhoids are internal, they sometimes leak mucus as the
body attempts to heal them. It is the leaking mucus which causes
the itching sensation, not the small ruptures in the walls of
the veins. Should this mucus leak through the anus, it may cause
irritation on the outside of the body as well as the inside. A
constant feeling of needing a bowel movement even after
completing one. The reason you go to the bathroom is because you
have the feeling in your anus that stool is ready to come out.
This feeling is caused, in part, by the swelling of the anal
cushions that help the stool emerge from the large intestine. If
you have bulging internal hemorrhoids that intrude into the end
portion of the large intestine, this will mimic the feeling of
needing to eliminate and will not disappear. The larger the
internal hemorrhoid, the more intense the feeling of needing to
eliminate.
A painful feeling in the anal canal. In most cases, internal
hemorrhoids are not painful. As described above, they exhibit
other symptoms. However, if the hemorrhoids are large enough and
begin to protrude through the anus, they can become quite
painful if they are squeezed during bowel movements by the
sphincter muscles in the anus during the course of elimination.
If this pain should become unbearable, it may indicate that the
blood supply to the hemorrhoid is being severely restricted by
the sphincter muscles in which case the hemorrhoid is literally
being strangled. Should this be the case, emergency treatment is
highly recommended.