Torn anus in the child
One of the most common reasons for a visit to the doctor in childhood is bleeding in the rectum. With the help of a thorough anamnesis and physical examination, the list of possible diagnoses can usually be easily narrowed down. By far the most common cause of blood in children’s stools is still the torn anus.
A bleeding polyp in the large intestine is much less common, accounting for two percent of all cases, but should still be considered as a differential diagnosis. Other causes of bleeding of the rectum in children, such as a prolapsed anal mucosa, are very rare. As in adults, a ruptured anus causes characteristic symptoms in children.
In addition to fresh blood on toilet paper, these include pain during bowel movements and itching of the anus at rest. The most common cause of small tears in the anal mucosa is constipation in children. For this reason it is important to regulate the child’s bowel movements.
For this purpose, special swelling agents can be used to keep the child’s stool soft. Lactulose, for example, can already be used in infants. Larger children, however, are usually prescribed Macrogol.
In addition, ointments can promote the wound healing process and alleviate pain. The latter is important so that the child does not develop a fear of defecation, which would result in retention of the stool with the consequence of further constipation. In essence, the treatment of torn anus in children is therefore similar to that of fissures in adults. Nevertheless, it is important to make sure that all drugs are purchased in dosages suitable for children.
