The outcome of postoperative hemorrhaging following a hemorrhoidectomy

Postoperative hemorrhage (PH) is rare, but it is widely recognized as a postoperative complication of a hemorrhoidectomy. The assessment of this complication may provide information which can be used to improve the clinical outcome of a patient who has undergone a hemorrhoidectomy.

Between January 2006 and December 2007, a total of 1294 patients with symptomatic hemorrhoids underwent a hemorrhoidectomy at our hospital. The patient records were retrospectively analyzed.

In this study, 23 patients had suffered from PH and had undergone a second operation (1.7%). The bleeding points were located as follows: 14 anterior,7 right laterally, 8 left laterally, and 2 posteriorly. Of these patients with early hemorrhage, 1 case was at the anterior, 1 was left lateral, and 2 were posterior. A significant correlation was observed between the period and the location of postoperative hemorrhage (P = 0.0023). From one to four piles were excised (1 in 264 patients, 2 in 240 patients, 3 in 702 patients, 4 in 88 patients). A significant correlation was also observed between the number of piles and the occurrence of PH (P = 0.032).

At the posterior wall, a late period hemorrhage is less likely to be found than an early period hemorrhage. It was found that the more piles that were excised, the greater the occurrence of PH.