How you can help yourself

Wash the anal area after you have had your bowels open, but not more than three times in a day, using an unperfumed soap and water. Some doctors recommend using aqueous cream (available from pharmacies) as a cleanser. Apply the cream, massage it gently over the area and then rinse off. If you are somewhere where you cannot wash, clean the area with wet tissues (but not with pre-moistened wipes). If you use shower gel to wash your body, make sure you rinse it off very thoroughly so that none remains between the buttocks.

Dab gently with a soft towel to dry ? do not rub. If drying is difficult, use a hairdryer on cool setting.
Do not put any disinfectant on the skin or in the bath water ? this can irritate the skin. Do not use bubble bath ? the perfume can irritate. Instead, put a handful of kitchen salt in your bath.

Keep a cotton-wool ball, dusted with powder, against the anus, inside your underpants or knickers. Use baby powder (not perfumed talcum powder) to dust it. Change it each time you wash.

Wear loose cotton underwear. Avoid tights and elastic ?shapewear? underwear, because they encourage sweating and moistness in the anal area. Avoid anything that keeps the buttocks close together.

Do not use biological (enzyme) washing powders for your underwear, or perfumed fabric softeners. Instead, use a detergent labelled ?for sensitive skin?.

Do not scratch. If you scratch, you damage the skin more and then you itch more. If you feel you really must scratch, try pinching the skin near the anus between your thumb and forefinger through your clothing; this is less damaging than actual scratching. People often scratch at night and do not realize they are doing so. If you think you might be scratching at night, talk to your doctor about taking an antihistamine, keep your fingernails short, wear cotton gloves at night for a while and ask your doctor to check for threadworms.

Do not use any greasy creams (such as Vaseline) on the area. Greasy creams keep the skin soggy and make the problem worse.

Be very cautious about anaesthetic creams or ointments. Sometimes they can help by relieving the itch/scratch cycle, but use them only for a short period (about a week).

Similarly, be very cautious about steroid creams. In the UK, it is possible to buy weak steroid cream (containing hydrocortisone 1% or less) from pharmacies. In the short-term, the steroid reduces inflammation and therefore relieves itching but, in the long-term, it can make the skin thinner and worsen the problem. Resist the temptation to keep on using a steroid cream. Use it for just 1 week, then throw the tube away.

Try witch hazel ? an old-fashioned remedy available from pharmacies. Dab it on twice a day, but stop immediately if it seems to be making the problem worse instead of better.

Dr James Le Fanu has a column in the Daily Telegraph that acts as a forum for readers? solutions to health problems. Readers have reported that the inside of a banana skin can relieve itchy skin, including anal itching.

Feel round the anus for lumps. This may not be easy, because the skin round the anus is normally puckered. A lump might be a wart, a pile or a skin tag alongside an anal fissure.

Avoid foods that cause excessive flatulence.

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Posted By: blindasabat on July 22nd 2008 at 18:05:25

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