Anal itching

Proven content

Anal itching can have many causes and it’s not easy to fix them. Anal itching is an extremely embarrassing condition that affects both children and adults.

What is anal itching?

Anal itching is nothing more than an increased need to scratch the area around the anus, using fingernails or various instruments. It is quite an embarrassing condition that patients do not want to admit to a doctor, let alone their loved ones. Anal itching causes discomfort and suffering more than once over a long period of time. People struggling with this problem are most often irritable, closed in on themselves, and often explode. Anal itching is a great shame, especially in public / work / school. Of course, this ailment is curable, it is enough to find its cause.

The causes of anal itching

1. Anal itching in children

In children, especially those in the preschool age, the most common cause of anal itching is pinworm. This parasitic infection is transmitted through the faecal-oral and inhalation route.

Pinworms are white worms that are visible to the naked eye: the female is 1 cm long, and the male is three times smaller. They live in the human digestive tract, which is their only host. The female migrating at night lays thousands of eggs in the anal folds and on the skin of the perineum, which causes troublesome itching in the perianal area. These eggs are then transferred through bedding and hands to the mouth or nose of other household members or an already infected person (causing auto-infection). The larvae hatch from the eggs and also enter the large intestine retrograde – a phenomenon called reinvasion.

Due to these two mechanisms, invasion is often chronic, but in 1/3 of cases it is subclinical. In the remaining cases, pinworm causes, apart from the itching, which is intensified mainly at night, many other symptoms. Children are irritable and restless, have problems with concentration, often have teeth grinding at night and have no appetite. It also manifests itself as anemia, weakness, nausea and abdominal pain. Intensive scratching causes damage to the epidermis and mucosa of the anus, pain and redness in these areas, the appearance of eczema lesions and bacterial overload. Long-term illness can even inhibit weight gain and growth.

1. Anal itching in adults

In adults, itching in the anus accompanies varicose veins and anal fissure, allergic eczema, pinworm infestation, and in women, irritation, pain and itching of these areas may cause thongs to be worn.

The cause of itching of the anus may also be the lack of proper personal hygiene as well as excessive hygiene, poor diet (a large amount of spicy foods); a large amount of coffee and alcohol or chocolate; vitamin A and D deficiency, excessive sweating around the anus – these stimuli also cause itching in this area.

In addition, anal itching is caused by fungal, bacterial and viral infections, and even malignancies that can develop around the anus (rarely).

Do mental problems contribute to anal itching?

Yes, depressive disorders can have the greatest impact on the perception of itching in the anus. Patients with mental health problems often scratch the area of ​​the anus for a long time, which results in the destruction of the skin surface. It happens that in this group of people there is no care for personal hygiene, patients forget to change their underwear, wash themselves, which in turn causes bacterial infections and itching. This is a vicious circle as itching causes scratching, and scratching poses a risk of infection and increased itching.

Anal itching symptoms

Anal itching is characterized by the following symptoms:

1. baking;
2. pain;
3. tickling;
4. red skin around the anus;
5. skin changes (superficial cavities in the skin caused by scratching);
6. bacterial outbreaks;
7. tiredness;
8. insomnia;
9. difficult relationships with other people;
10. depressive disorders.

Do your symptoms require medical consultation? Check it out for yourself in a short medical interview.

Rectal itching is sometimes so severe that we are unable to function normally and our daily activities are completely disrupted. Unfortunately, relationships with other people who, out of shame, try to limit ourselves with all our strength, suffer very much. Such a drastic decline in well-being causes even depressive states to develop.

Anal itching is an extremely troublesome ailment. If you experience the first symptoms, be sure to consult a doctor. Don’t you want to do it in person? At haloDoctor.pl you can make an online teleconsultation with a dermatologist who will answer all your questions. Take advantage of an e-visit today.

Is rectal itching related to skin conditions?

Anal diseases are one of the causes of perianal itching (otherwise known as proctological diseases). The diseases of the anus include:

1. hemorrhoids,
2. rectal prolapse
3. anal fissure.

The above conditions cause that patients experience increased itching of the anus, as inflammatory mucus (from the anus) is secreted in its area. Such ailments are treated by surgeons and proctologists.

Skin diseases and itching of the anus are also an interesting issue. Among the skin ailments causing anal itching, we can distinguish lichen and psoriasis, the treatment of which is mainly dealt with by dermatologists.

Moreover, itching of the anus is caused by allergic diseases, more specifically contact allergy. Irritants are very often found in washing powders, softeners, soaps, gels or intimate hygiene products. Patients who suffer from itching of the anus should first eliminate all allergens that cause unpleasant symptoms from the environment, so pharmacological treatment may be unnecessary.

Anal itching – treatment

The treatment of anal itching depends on its cause, but doctors agree that the most important thing is to take care of personal hygiene. We recommend, for example, HEMOpran – a gel for washing the area around the anus, reducing itching. In addition, the underwear we wear is of great importance, it should be made of natural materials (e.g. cotton), avoid artificial materials that do not allow air to pass through. Also, diarrhea and constipation may increase itching, so you should take care of regular defecation (meals with a lot of fiber help).

We encourage you to familiarize yourself with our dietary fiber offers.

Treatment of pinworms consists in taking the antiparasitic preparation twice, depending on the type of drug, two weeks apart (pyrantel, mebendazole) or one month (albendazole). All household members should be treated. An indispensable element of treatment is the disinfection of items on which pinworm eggs may be: boiling bedding, towels, thorough cleaning of the apartment (eggs are also in the dust) and taking care of personal hygiene: washing hands and washing after visiting the toilet, changing linen every day .

Check what drugs are in the composition of pyrantel

We recommend products supporting the fight against uninvited guests. We remind you that in the case of the above-mentioned symptoms, consultation with a doctor is necessary.

1. CaliVitaParaprotex – Compare offers
2. Pyrantelum suspension against pinworms – compare offers

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