Hello everyone!
I am so glad to find this board and feel I'm not alone.
Well, I haven't read the entire board but I guess I am going to be one of the long suffers. I have been suffering with anal fissures for over 12 years!
They are definitly chronic. I have always suffer from my digestive system since I was a baby (by the way I am 37). Everything started around 1998 when I develop hemorroids. They became big and really painful. Blood in my stool became frequent and scare me a lot. I decided to have surgery for the hemorroids and the Dr. told me I had also a pretty big fissure. That was my introduction to anal fissures. My hemorroid problem went away but the fissure keep coming back. I have tried eveything and sooner or later the fissure or fissures (it feels like is more than one) came back.
My last Dr. recommend me the nytroglycerin ointment but cound't use it for more than a couple of days because the headaches I was getting made everything worst. I have found that the bath sitz and replacing toilet paper for baby wipes work best but really I keep suffering. I am a little hesitant about surgery because all the side effects I have read.
Well, that is my history and I am glad to have found this board! :)

Hey Garlopa! Welcome :D I'm sorry you have to be here, but it's good that you are, since there are lots of folks here who know what you're going through and can offer great advice and support. I'm amazed that you lasted 12 years with a fissure! I think you'll find lots of great first-hand information here on the surgery. I found the posts here more helpful than much of the medical literature I was reading before my surgery. Anyway, I'm sure you'll find lots of good information that will help you with whatever you decide to do. :D

hi garlopa48, how come your doctor didn't do an LIS since he mentioned that your fissure is big?

Thanks guys!
Unfortunately I've seen several doctors dwarfs8. I move around a bit and I have not been consistent with one doctor. All of them start giving me the usual thing of lots of water, fiber, laxative, stool softeners, etc... The last Dr. prescribe me the Nitro ointment and couldn't use it because of the headaches. Next week I'm seeing a new Dr. and hopefully I can stay with him for good.

hmm, can you stay with just one doc? It's really tough for a doc to judge if you are getting better when you are moving around... 12 yrs are a long time that you've suffered... if it's still giving you lots of pain and discomfort, you are probably a good candidate for LIS.