What are the Treatment Options?

The treatment measure adopted would depend on the nature of the fissure, i.e. if it is acute (lasting up to a few days) or chronic (lasting for more than 6 weeks).

Home remedies such as increasing the intake of fibre and fluids is highly recommended for softening the stools. Foods rich in fibre,like whole grain bread, fruits and vegetables, brown rice and oats, can help heal anal fissures in a few weeks.

Your doctor may also advise you to soak in warm water for 10 – 20 minutes as often as possible, particularly after bowel movements, to relax and reduce the stress on the sphincter muscles. Steroid creams, other topical applications and Botox injections may be prescribed to reduce discomfort, improve blood circulation and relax the sphincter muscles of the anus.

Topical anaesthetics and pain medication may be prescribed to control pain.

Surgery is usually the last resort when other treatments do not provide the needed relief. Some of the surgical procedures include:

• Lateral internal sphincterotomy: Your doctor may perform lateral internal sphincterotomy, where pain and spasm is reduced by removing a small section of the anal sphincter muscle.
• Fissurectomy: Your doctor will surgically remove the anal fissure with the surrounding healthy tissue. This method is not commonly used in adults, but is performed mostly in children.
• Advancement anal flaps: Your doctor will take healthy tissue from a different part of the body to repair the fissure and help improve blood flow. This method is commonly used to treat chronic fissures that have occurred due to injury to the anus, especially after pregnancy.