My fistula had ruined my honeymoon trip and a number of unsuccessful operations devastated my whole marriage life. Let me share my terrible experience with an anal fistula.
About an year ago, I got married to the man of my dreams and we were on our honeymoon trip in the beautiful Goa. After a couple of days, I started experiencing a lump inside my anus but ignored as I didn’t feel any discomfort. Later, the lump became painfully big and I had trouble even to sit.
However, I visited the general physician and was given random medicines which only relieved me from the horrendous pain. My pain in the anal area was getting worse and intolerable. On the other side, I was depressed as the situation has taken away all my happiness and hopes on my honeymoon trip. Even after one week, there is no improvement in the pain and so we returned to our hometown
Abscesses can occur anywhere on the body which is due to a collection of bacteria-producing pus. Abscesses that occur around the bottom area with the lining of the ano-rectum is due to a fistula.
A few weeks later, I started experiencing some wetness on the right side of my perianal region which is pus. I thought it was some heat boil and looked forward to it getting healed soon. But, turned out that it just got worse and over time, I could see some stool coming out of the opening. I had to use sanitary pads everyday to avoid any embarrassing public situation. It developed into drainage of stool & pus with constant pain from both the external opening and the anus, which was annoying.
I went to many gastroenterology experts and specialists from the local clinic for infectious diseases. All they gave me were antibiotics, painkillers and sent away. I consulted a surgeon, he examined inside the anus and diagnosed me with complex fistula. He had a seton put in for 4 -6 weeks. I found the seton fairly comfortable but had lots of pain and pus discharge.
I have also tried homeopathy, no improvement then tried Ayurvedic medicines, only pain and abscess drain reduced but the fistula not cured fully.
Moreover, my surgeon inspected my anus and suggested me a fistula surgery. I have had countless surgeries including opening up the fistula tract in the hope of removing and ridding me of that nasty fistula. Unfortunately, nothing has worked and my fistula in ano remains as large as when I was first diagnosed. I suffered more than a year with useless operations and was really depressed and gave up all hope of ever getting better.
My friend suggested me the best colorectal surgeon, Dr. Parameshwara C M at SMILES Bangalore, to get rid of anal fistula. I had not accepted because I was traumatized by my last surgeries. But, when I was in pain, I just wanted to give it one last try by consulting Dr. Parameshwara C M.
Finally, I made an appointment & visited SMILES as my last hope to cure fistula in ano. The chief surgeon of Fistula examined and explained me about the FiLAC (Fistula-tract Laser Closure) surgery for fistula in ano, the possible outcomes, and the success rate. Finally, I decided to undergo FiLAC procedure which was my 7th operation in a span of one year. I was under general anesthesia and the procedure is completed within 30 minutes and discharged from the hospital that very evening.
A few weeks after I have undergone the FiLAC surgical procedure, I noticed that the external wound became dry and the pus from the anus subsided totally. Now, it is more than 6 months since the operation, I didn’t find any pain from the rectum and pus discharge or any fistula coming back. And, I really hope there won’t be any issues in the future. Also, I dreaded the sphincter damage which I read online as the side effect leading to complete loss of bowel control. But the doctor assured that this is a minimally invasive technique & no sphincter damage would be there in any case.
I am so thankful and can honestly say that, I am totally healed from fistula under the care of Dr. Parameshwar C M, one of the best colo-proctologists in Bangalore. And, FiLAC is one of the best surgical procedures to treat fistula in ano, but the procedure depends on the surgeon. The surgeon needs to be well-experienced and requires right skills. I learnt that without appropriate skills, FiLAC procedure can be very painful and may not be successful. So, it is essential that the doctor be skilled, trained & experienced. Dr. Parameshwara C M has 18+ years of experience in the field of Coloproctology and successfully performed a number of surgeries.
I feel anyone suffering from complex fistulas should avoid surgical procedures done by quacks or unskilled surgeons. It is a fact that at Bengaluru smiles – a unit of SMILES, the doctors analyze the patient and examine how deeper the fistulas are and where they are positioned. And, then give the appropriate fistula treatment (Fistulotomy, LIFT, FiLAC, Ksharsutra) which is suitable for the patient.
Get the best treatment for fistula at the hands of the best colorectal specialists at SMILES. Good luck!!