Abstract
Background
Hemorrhoids are a very common ano-rectal condition affecting pregnant females worldwide
and representing a major medical and socioeconomic problem. In this paper, we aim
to compare the effectiveness of the Sitz bath method with an ano-rectal cream as part
of a conservative management protocol to treat hemorrhoids among pregnant Saudi Arabian
females.
Methods
A prospective comparative study of the results of two conservative treatment protocols
of 495 pregnant females diagnosed to have hemorrhoids during pregnancy between January
2010 and December 2014 was done. The first conservative protocol consisted of three
times per day salty warm Sitz bath (using 20 g of commercial salt) for 284 patients. The second protocol consisted of topical cream
twice daily for 211 patients. Both protocols included the supportive treatments of
2 g glycerin suppositories per rectum 20 min before defecation as lubricant and Metamucil bulk-forming fiber (a mix of one
dose (sachet) within 240 ml (8 oz) of cold liquid) once daily after breakfast for constipation.
Results
Complete healing was achieved in all patients 284 (100%) in the Sitz bath group, compared
to 179 (84.8%) in the cream group. Sitz bath was found to represent a statistically
significant difference in achieving complete healing for hemorrhoids in pregnant Saudi
Arabian females compared to an ano-rectal cream (p-value < 0.05).
Conclusion
A conservative treatment protocol for hemorrhoids during pregnancy, in which Sitz
bath is an essential modality, showed very promising outcomes compared to an ano-rectal
cream.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: October 18, 2017
Accepted:
October 4,
2017
Received:
June 27,
2017
Identification
Copyright
© 2017 Australian College of Midwives. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
