I am new to this forum but not to Crohns - diagnosed in my 40's I have had it for 16 years (or longer as it took a long time for diagnosis). I am a success story in that I had surgery in 1997 and coped pretty well since, and recent tests have shown no active crohns anywhere. However, I have been suffering from a problem with my rear end which I am sure is because of the various difficulties I have had since I was first ill. I started with a tear, and that got more painful and despite creams just kept recurring, so I had an examination under anaesthetic and they found a fistula too, which seemed to be old and not active. The surgeon put in a seton stitch and it seemed to be ok for a while. But then the tear started to get worse and the irritation of the seton stitch seemed to be making the muscles in my rear end go into full spasm. I found it difficult even to pass air! It was then that I was offered a botox injection into the muscle to relieve the cramp, under anaesthetic with the help of a softer seton stich being put in to replace the original. Everything is looking good except for one thing. For the first time in years I have twice had a bowel movement BEFORE getting to the loo. So embarassing but the muscle gives way under pressure it seems, and the only way to stop it is in effect to "become constipated" which won't help heal the tear I have. So I am hoping that it wears off (only had it a few weeks, so will be a while). I don't know what alternatives there are that are worth taking - most surgical options appear to suggest at least a third of people get incontinence after. Anyone else had this treatment and been given advice about alternatives?
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Botox - the latest treatment?
- Thread starter Chrissie52
- Start date
Hi Chrissie
I have had Botox in my butt twice to try and manage a fissure that is the result of severe perianal disease.
The Botox paralyses the muscle - just as it does for old ladies faces.
For me - it wore off after about two months.
During that time - you can't really control the sphincter muscle as it is paralysed to stop spasming - so you can't control things like farts and poop exits - they just head on out and make a spectacle of themselves whether you're ready or not.
Both times the treatment did not resolve my problem. Although I would always try it again as it is not too invasive.
The first time - Infliximab worked as a treatment. Second time - I had to get a Stoma as the pain and damage were too great.
I hope your treatment works for you.
I have had Botox in my butt twice to try and manage a fissure that is the result of severe perianal disease.
The Botox paralyses the muscle - just as it does for old ladies faces.
For me - it wore off after about two months.
During that time - you can't really control the sphincter muscle as it is paralysed to stop spasming - so you can't control things like farts and poop exits - they just head on out and make a spectacle of themselves whether you're ready or not.
Both times the treatment did not resolve my problem. Although I would always try it again as it is not too invasive.
The first time - Infliximab worked as a treatment. Second time - I had to get a Stoma as the pain and damage were too great.
I hope your treatment works for you.
Thanks for responding. So far I have not been offered any drugs other than Pentasa, and as this doesn't seem too bad (some stories I just read sound much worse than me!), I was hoping to stay off drugs. I suppose I will have to just grin and bear it for now, at least it should wear off. Here in the UK (NHS) I seem to switch between the medical team and the surgical team, so having been allied to the surgical team, I now need to check with the medical team if they recommend a different drug like inflixmab.
I had my terminal ileum and saecum removed 16 years ago, and was lucky not to have a stoma then. Oddly enough I am not as worried about a stoma (my husband has one for a totally different reason, and now he finds it easy to manage, compared to having to dash to the loo all the time).
I had my terminal ileum and saecum removed 16 years ago, and was lucky not to have a stoma then. Oddly enough I am not as worried about a stoma (my husband has one for a totally different reason, and now he finds it easy to manage, compared to having to dash to the loo all the time).