These products contain protectant and anesthetics (pain relievers). Local anesthetics numb area and decrease burning and itching.

Remember that local anesthetics may cause allergy.

Analgesics (menthol, camphor) relieve pain and itching as well

Vasoconstrictors reduce swelling in perianal area. Though they may have side effects. Better discuss with your doctor.

Protectants (kaolin, cocoa butter, lanolin, mineral oil, starch, zinc oxide or calamine, glycerin, etc) create a physical barrier to prevent contact of stool and skin. This reduces irritation, itching, and burning.

Similarly, some agents - astringents - dry skin. That helps to relieve burning, itching, and pain as well.

To kill or at least suppress bacteria and other organisms use antiseptics. Boric acid, phenol, resorcinol and many others can be used. Again better to discuss with your doctor or at least pharmacist. Many of these drugs are sold over-the-counter.

Corticosteroids. Corticosteroids decrease inflammation and relieve itching, but may cause skin damage. They should be used for few days only.

Sitz bath may also help in relieving symptoms.

When those methods fail your doctor may perform one of following:

Sclerotherapy (causes scarring of hemorrhoid).

Rubber band ligation. The rubber band cut off blood supply and hemorrhoid heals with scarring.

Side effects of any of treatment may be infection of fat and other tissues surrounding anal canal, especially if patient has diabetes cancer, AIDS.

Another option - electrotherapy and infrared photocoagulation. Works same way, cause scarring of tissue. Cryotherapy uses cold to cause inflammation and scarring. Practically same, though more time consuming.

Let say your medical treatment fails. What do you do then? Well, you go to surgeon and treat it surgically.

Operations are done in less than 10% of patients. Though it depends.

Surgical procedures include Dilation. It is when surgeon stretches your anal sphincter.

Ligation. Often a Doppler probe helps to measures blood flow and finds individual artery. The doctor ties off artery.

Sphincterotomy. It is when sphincter is partially cut. Whole idea is to reduce pressure.

Hemorrhoidectomy. Hemorrhoidectomy makes sense for patients with third- or fourth-degree hemorrhoids. The hemorrhoids are cut out.

Stapled hemorrhoidectomy. Stapler cuts off ring of expanded hemorrhoidal tissue.

There are different considerations why to do this and not that type of treatment. And vice versa.

There are complications (pain, difficulty urinating, bleeding several days after surgery, scarring, infection, stool incontinence). Complications happen relatively rare, but they are still there. Better talk to you surgeon.

I hope you be OK. You were not alone. It looks like Napoleon Bonaparte, Carter, Hemingway, Tennyson, Lewis Carroll also were suffering from hemorrhoids.

http://www.geocities.com/hemorrhoids_disease/ Aleksandr Kavokin, MD1994 Russia,PhD1997 Russia - Immunology and Allergy, postdoc at Cancer Center at Med U of South Carolina, postdoc at Yale - Cardiology, Molecular Medicine. http://www.kavokin.com http://www.geocities.com/hemorrhoids_disease/ http://www.geocities.com/aging_rejuvenation/ http://www.geocities.com/appendicitis_disease/ http://www.geocities.com/melanoma_disease/

Don't wait for your "Check Engine" light to come on. Have your blood tested. Call your doctor today and make appointment.

The goal with identifying pre-diabetes is to prevent onset of diabetes from ever happening.

Your physician can determine if you have pre-diabetes with two common tests. The fasting plasma glucose test (FPG) and oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT). Both require an overnight fast.

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