pain near my perineum

[ecurtis]

Hi, I am a 26 yr old female. I have 3 children, my last birth was 9 months ago. Around the time of my 6 week checkup I had mentioned to my ob that I was having horrible constipation and pain. She prescribed stool softeners and sent me home. I have a very good diet, I eat alot of fruits, vegetables and grains and also drink alot of water. As of lately I was having a really bad pain near the perineum, I can feel a lump on the left side more toward my rectum. It is about the size of a quarter. It can also be felt through the wall of my vagina. It has flared up twice in the last 2 months and causes really bad shooting pains that go to my rectum. I do have hemorrhoids but they have not caused much pain or bleeding at all. I have been to the emergency room and doctors and they assume it has something to do with my reproductive organs. I go for paps and ultrasounds and that is the end of their testing. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I am in so much pain. Thanks

[Dr. Joshua]

Hi, thanks for your question. I assume that along with the paps and ultrasounds you've had a gyn exam also, and that seemed normal? One thing that comes to mind, which apparently hasn't been done, is proctoscopy, i.e. examination of the rectum with a scope to rule out any rectal processes and check the hemorrhoid status. Possible hemorrhoids could be treated by ligation in the same session.

Based on the information you gave me, in my opinion the most likely cause for your pain is thrombosed (filled with blood clot) hemorrhoids. That would explain the periodic pain and the the lump. The periodic nature of the symptoms point more to hemorrhoids or infection and do not immediately suggest a tumor. However, this is just generally and statistically speaking -- I can't possibly be sure what the cause is in your specific case, so I strongly recommend that you go to the doctor and have this checked out again.

[ecurtis]

Thanks so much for the response. I was reading about that on a few websites. I've made an appointment and will post back with the results. :)
Thank you for your time.

[Dr. Joshua]

You're very welcome. Keep us posted!

[ecurtis]

Well I've been to numerous doctors and no one wanted to address my issue. I finally found one who examined me and discovered it wasn't a hemorrhoid at all. It's a vaginal cyst. I have appointments scheduled for later this week with an OB/GYN. I'll let ya know how it goes. :)

[Dr. Joshua]

How did it go?

[ecurtis]

I've had surgery to remove the mass. The surgeon said it was more than likely scar tissue from one of my deliveries. She is sending it in for further research. I am recovering well. Thanks for your advice :) It made going to the doctors a bit easier.

[Dr. Joshua]

Great! I'm glad it's taken care of and you're recovering well. Stay in touch!