Hello all,

This is my first entry on this page, even though I have been a sufferer for many years. I've been getting anal fissures for last 15 years. It has never really bothered me in the sense that I very rarely had any pain, and usually they would go away and appear again later (or maybe it's the same one flaring up). Surgery was never discussed by any of the doctors, but a few years ago it was suggested that I could a botox injection if the problems persisted.

The fissures, however, are not my problem right now.

In the last 3 years I've been having problems with the area just outside of the sphincter. After wiping a few times I would start bleeding. It seemed very clear that the bleeding was from that area, and not from somewhere inside, because I could basically "dap" my toilet paper on the area, and get blood. I assumed it was due to wiping too hard/much but decided to check with the doctor anyway. Neither the GP or the col surgeon could see anything in the area, and treated me for my internal fissures instead.

Anyway, time passed and I just sort of lived with it, trying to be more gentle on the area and using wet wipes (which really helped!). Then September last year I would all of the sudden feel a small lump in the same area, just outside my anus. Terrified I went to the coloproctologist who told me that I have a thrombosed vein. She made it very clear to me that this is not the same as a thrombosed hemorrhoid, but to be honest I still do not understand the difference.

Anway, it would dissappeared within 6 weeks, which I believe it did. Then a few months ago I starting getting very intense pain every time I would go to the toilet, and the pain would last most of the day, but subside before the next day. I was sure that this would be due to a fissure, and I held off going to the doctor, but after 3-4 weeks I decided it was time. He told me that I - again - had a thrombosed vein, and that again it would go away within 6 weeks. The thing is still there now, with slight pain, but not as intense as before.

Have anyone else here had similar problems with recurring thrombosed veins? Or could it be the same that just never dissappear? The docs never do checkups, but tell me to come back if it bothers me too much.

Is anyone familar with bleeding on a very specific spot outside the anus due to wiping (or something else)?

What is the difference between a thrombosed vein and a thrombosed hemorrhoid?

Thanks a lot :)

Forgot to mention that I suffer from IBS, and have had a sigmoidoscopy and several anoscopies (ouch).