An NHS doctor has issued a warning on TikTok about a ‘shooting pain’ that could be a sign of a serious health issue.
Dr Karan Rangarajan, also known as @dr.karanr on TikTok, urged people not to dismiss this common symptom and to seek help from their GP if they experience it. On his podcast, Dr Karan Explores, he discussed the issue with gynaecological surgeon, Karen Tang.
He said: “Stabbing butthole pain. I’ve seen an increased amount of patients in colorectal clinics that I’ve done, who come in with stabbing butthole pain. lightning bum, shooty pain, proctalgia fugax. It seems like a funny thing when you see videos on it or when someone describes it. It’s a sharp lightning type pain in your crotch or bum hole and it actually ruins the quality of life for a lot of people.”
When asked if she often sees this condition, which disproportionately affects women, Tang replied: “Absolutely. It can be a sign of things like endometriosis or pelvic floor spasm.
“Most people have never heard this term proctalgia fugax which is the spasming of the pelvic floor and the rectal muscles. It is a fairly common thing. There can be actual serious medical issues causing that.
“Rectal pain is one of the most common symptoms of endometriosis and because women’s pain has sometimes been so normalised, people have been kind of conditioned to ‘oh I’m just going to not talk about this’.”
However, she cautions against self-diagnosis and treatment, emphasising: “It’s something that people should bring up with their doctor.”
According to patient.info, they explain that the exact cause of the condition remains a mystery, stating: “It is believed to be due to spasms of the muscles of the anus. The muscles here are very strong, as these are the muscles you use to hold your poo in, or relax to let the poo out.
“Most of the time it is not obvious what has set it off. In some people, it starts after an operation – for example, an injection for piles, or after a hysterectomy. It seems to be more common in people who have IBS, and in people who have anxiety symptoms.”
