Rectal Prolapse (cont.)

Medical Author:

George Lazarou, MD, FACOG

Coauthor:

Buck Christensen

Medical Editor:

Simmy Bank, MD, MB, ChB

Medical Editor:

Mary L Windle, PharmD

Medical Editor:

BS Anand, MD

The symptoms of a prolapsed rectum are similar to those of hemorrhoids; however, rectal prolapse originates higher in the body than hemorrhoids do. A person with a prolapsed rectum may feel tissue protruding from the anus and experience the following symptoms:
- Pain during bowel movements
- Mucus or blood discharge from the protruding tissue
- Fecal incontinence (inability to control bowel movements)
- Loss of urge to defecate (mostly with larger prolapses)
- Awareness of something protruding upon wiping
Early in the development of a prolapsed rectum, the protrusion may occur during bowel movements and retract afterwards. The protrusion may become more frequent and appear when the person sneezes or coughs. Eventually, the protruding rectum may need to be manually replaced or may continually protrude.
People with internal intussusception, in which the rectum is displaced but does not protrude from the body, often experience difficulty with bowel movements and a sense of incomplete bowel movements.