There are several clinical settings of traumatic neuroma and a few may occur following surgical procedures. A 42-year-old man presented with anal pain five years after a Milligan Morgan hemorrhoidectomy for prolapsing hemorrhoids. A 4×4×3 mm sized anal polyp was seen during a rectal examination at a follow-up five years after surgery. The patient complained of point tenderness, pruritus, and anal discomfort as well as fecal retention. An endoscopy revealed a rectal polyp. Remarkably, histopathological examination and immunohistochemistry of the excised polyp showed a polypoid traumatic neuroma of the rectal plexus. After the excision of the polyp, the patient's complaint resolved completely. Traumatic neuromas may be a cause of significant pain and tenderness in patients with anal surgery or repair of anal lacerations. Interestingly, this is the second case of anal traumatic neuroma since Dr. Marks' first case in 1956 and is a possible complication of Milligan Morgan hemorrhoidectomy for prolapsing hemorrhoids. Similar complications of rectal surgery are reviewed.
Keywords: constipation; hemorrhoids; polyp and traumatic neuroma; surgery.
© 2014 by the Association of Clinical Scientists, Inc.