The anal plicoma is a benign skin protrusion on the outer portion of the anus that can be mistaken for a hemorrhoid. Generally, the anal plicoma has no other associated symptoms, but in some cases it can cause itching or make it difficult to clean the area and lead to infections.
Treatment is not always necessary, but if the plicoma is very large, it may be necessary to remove excess skin through laser, surgery or cryotherapy.
What symptoms
The anal plicoma is characterized by a protrusion of skin that hangs outside the anus, which usually does not cause pain or have associated symptoms. However, in some cases, it can cause itching and contribute to the accumulation of residues from the stool, which become difficult to eliminate and which can cause inflammation or lead to infections more easily.
Possible causes
The anal plicoma results from a chronic inflammatory process in the anus, which ended up swelling the region and which, when it was removed, left a hanging skin. Some of the causes that can lead to this inflammatory process are:
- Having hard stools, which can injure the anus; Pregnancy; Anal fissures; Local irritations, such as mycoses, dermatitis and anal eczema; Anal hemorrhoids; Complication in the healing of surgery in the anal region; Inflammatory bowel diseases, such as Crohn's disease.
Learn how to identify and treat anal fissure.
How to prevent
To prevent the plicoma from appearing or to prevent it from increasing in size, one must avoid having hard and dry stools, through changes in the diet or remedies that soften the stools, for example. In addition, one should avoid rubbing the anus with toilet paper and avoid spicy foods, such as pepper, peppers, ready-made spices or sausage, for example, to prevent the feces from becoming too acidic.
See what to eat to make it easier to eliminate feces.
How the treatment is done
Generally, treatment is not necessary to remove the plicoma, and many people want to remove this thickening of the skin just for aesthetic reasons.
In some cases, the doctor may recommend removing the plicoma through surgery, when the plicoma is very large, when there is a risk of causing infection, when anal hygiene is very difficult because of the plicoma or when it is always swelling, for example. example.
The plicoma can also be removed with a laser or through cryotherapy, which uses liquid nitrogen, which freezes excess skin, which ends up falling off after a few days.
