DH problem in delicate area, don't know what to do.

[Tanfastic]

Evening all

I could do with some advice really from you wise ones. DH has been having bleeding from his bottom for a couple of months now. Prior to that a severe "itch" up his bum and around the entrance to his anus. When he passes a stool he's in excruciating pain for hours, gets a couple of hours relief and then dreads going to the loo again. The blood is passed when he wipes (bright red).

He's been (forced by me) to see the GP (nurse practitioner as no gp available due to covid). Nurse practitioner said he wasn't allowed to look past the entrance to his bum because he wasn't qualified. He looked at the outside areas and said all looked okay. No fissure/piles or anything unusual.

They've given him sachets to loosen his bowels to make it easier to pass and lidocaine for the itching/to numb the area and have referred him as an 'urgent" to the hospital. That was three weeks ago. Hospital have said no appointments due to covid and they have no consultant at present. Will have to just wait, no idea how long. May be able to get seen at another hospital but go would need to re-refer. He's being given the run around. He's not got the criteria for a fast track referral.

Don't really know what to do. He's in agony, still passing blood (he's read if a fissure it would have healed by now).

All whilst this is going on his uncle is presently dying from bowel cancer and also his dad and another uncle have also had bowel tumours removed (benign). Dh is due for a colonoscopy next year (he has five yearly checkups due to a polyp being found four years' ago).

I assume we just have to sit and wait but it's unbelievably frustrating that if it is something that he is just not getting seen.

Any advice welcome if any gp's here especially. I work for the NhS but not in a clinical capacity so I know things are difficult atm.

Can you afford a private appointment? I was referred for 'urgent' NHS ENT appointment three weeks ago, rang up as on letter yet and they said they can offer me an appointment in May.... I can get an private ENT appointment end of next week if I wanted.

@FeatherySquawkington

Can you afford a private appointment? I was referred for 'urgent' NHS ENT appointment three weeks ago, rang up as on letter yet and they said they can offer me an appointment in May.... I can get an private ENT appointment end of next week if I wanted.

I've mentioned this to him as an option because at least he'd find out what it is hopefully. He didn't seem to think there would be a consultant though as the local private hospital uses the same consultants as the local NHS hospital uses. When he rang up the NHS hospital (40 minutes holding ) today they said they were "trying to get somebody". In the meantime he's climbing the bloody walls .

I'll try and convince him. He's not in the best of moods atm to be honest as you can imagine.

I’d definitely investigate the private option more thoroughly. Even if it’s not at your closest one.

@Muchtoomuchtodo

I’d definitely investigate the private option more thoroughly. Even if it’s not at your closest one.

To be honest I might even make some enquiries myself, you know what men are like. It's been bloody weeks now and he's as miserable as fuck and can hardly leave the house due to the sachets that are now making him loose. Just as well we are in lockdown 🙄

My husband is suffering from similar so I can sympathise. We actually ended up in A&E this week because he was in so much pain and losing so much blood. They have diagnosed prolapsed internal piles.

Maybe your husband has internal piles, these can be very painful I understand

My husband has been referred for emergency surgery (as his are so bad) but it's still 3 weeks away and he cannot move off the sofa and hasn't for nearly a week.

This is awful I'm so sorry you and your husband have had to go through this. Reluctantly I agree private is your best option.

@indecisivewoman81

My husband is suffering from similar so I can sympathise. We actually ended up in A&E this week because he was in so much pain and losing so much blood. They have diagnosed prolapsed internal piles.

Maybe your husband has internal piles, these can be very painful I understand

My husband has been referred for emergency surgery (as his are so bad) but it's still 3 weeks away and he cannot move off the sofa and hasn't for nearly a week.

I nearly took him to A&E last week to be honest. Would he still be bleeding with piles though? It's been weeks.

I've just had a look at local BUPA and there's an appt with a colorectal consultant on 30th November, will see if he wants to take it.

Get a private consultation ASAP.
You can then be filtered back into the NHS as needed but he needs to be examined properly.

I'd also be writing to the PALS service at your hospital.

Colorectal consultants haven't stopped working and there's no need for a referral to be denied

Fissures do not always heal quickly, I know from experience! But depends how much blood

I'd be jumping up and down at the GP as well to refer him somewhere else pretty pronto

You have no GPs available at all? That's absolutely shocking.

Ours is mostly offering telephone consultations or online but they are doing face to face where a physical examination is needed. DH was seen straightaway for abdominal pain a few weeks ago.

I would push for a GP consultation. GPs have been told to continue to provide services even through lockdown. If your usual GP practice can't help can you go elsewhere and register with another doctor? An nurse staring at the outside of his bottom really isn't good enough at all given his family history.

I'd never normally suggest it but I'd also consider going to a&e simply as a way of actually being able to properly see a doctor.

GP should run bloods and a faecal test if not already done so. Escalate this via practice manager if necessary. Fresh red blood is less likely to be due to be anything sinister though and the itch is consistent with haemorrhoids.

Can you go back to the GP and get referred elsewhere? Some private hospitals were taking nhs patients to ease the backlog

Thanks all. He rang his GP practice first of all a few weeks' ago, had a telephone consultation with a NP (not a gp) who gave him a prescription for the creams etc. Told him if not resolved ring back up. When he rang up a couple of weeks after as no different they tried to discourage him coming into the surgery to be honest, but reluctantly offered a face to face but only with a NP. He probably wouldn't have bothered if he thought he wasn't going to get a proper examination. I mean to get your arse out once is bad enough but then to have to go back if it's not been examined properly!

Thanks for all the suggestions. I don't think it's anything sinister personally (I think he does I've caught him googling) but I'm thinking probably a very persistent fissure inside where it can't be seen or a bad case of internal piles. I just think he's so uncomfortable that I don't know how long they expect him to go on like it.

@PeanutButterFalcon

Can you go back to the GP and get referred elsewhere? Some private hospitals were taking nhs patients to ease the backlog

He says he's gonna ring up on Monday and ask to speak to someone other than the receptionist who it's very difficult to get past atm.

Personally I'd go private - that should not be left without attention.

@Thisisnotnormal69

Fissures do not always heal quickly, I know from experience! But depends how much blood

It's every time he goes, blood in the tissue when he wipes, not tons but everything time even since he's been "soft".

Can I ask what your experience was with one?

@slidingdrawers

GP should run bloods and a faecal test if not already done so. Escalate this via practice manager if necessary. Fresh red blood is less likely to be due to be anything sinister though and the itch is consistent with haemorrhoids.

Thank you.

Good luck and definitely be pushy with the receptionist and ask for a GP.

Are you sure it’s not piles? You can have them quite high up it hurts so much more when they are higher up.

Go private absolutely if you can afford it

@GameSetMatch

Are you sure it’s not piles? You can have them quite high up it hurts so much more when they are higher up.

No not sure, he's done a lot of googling and seems to think if it were piles it wouldn't be bleeding for all this time. When I had piles after ds was born it bled but then stopped quite soon after. But we're no experts which is why we need one I suppose.

Possibly to provide you some reassurance but I was suffering very similar symptoms for months . Lots of pain. Lots of blood. I had a colonoscopy and was diagnosed as having both piles and a fissure fairly high up.

Annoyingly for me they decided I would need surgery to correct but wanted to do further investigation first but my appointment for that originally in March was put back a due to covid and my new date is feb 2021 for a phone consult so I don't think I will be getting fixed anytime soon so I also have decided to go down the private route as the scheme I can join and pay for via work takes on pre existing problems