Successful Recovery of Fistula with FILAC surgery
It began as a subtle, annoying discomfort—a strange, lumpy sensation whenever I sat down. As a 40-year-old male living in India, with a normal BMI and no underlying medical conditions or comorbidities, I was used to being healthy. At first, I brushed it off, hoping it would simply fade. But as the weeks bled into a month, the discomfort evolved. A small, external opening formed near my anus, and it began to drain.
Realizing this wasn’t going away on its own, I booked an appointment with a general physician. After listening to my symptoms, he suspected a simple local infection, perhaps caused by an ingrown or trapped hair. He prescribed a one-week course of antibiotics, and I left the clinic feeling hopeful. But the hope was short-lived. Two weeks passed, the medication was long gone, and the persistent discharge remained.
That was when I decided to see a specialist—a colorectal surgeon. One look at the site, combined with my timeline of symptoms, and he gave me a reality check. It wasn't just a simple infection. I was dealing with an anal fistula, accompanied by a minor fissure and hemorrhoids (piles). To map out the enemy and understand the exact size and path of the fistula track, the surgeon ordered an MRI.
The scan the following day revealed the true scale of the problem. The report read like a complex architectural blueprint: a 62 mm high trans-sphincteric fistula with an internal opening at the 12 o’clock position. It had one open track stretching 63 mm long, and a second, blind track measuring 24 mm. No active abscess and max thickness of track was 6 mm.
Armed with the data, I met with the surgeon the next day. The verdict was clear: surgery was the only definitive way to clear out the fistula, piles, and fissure all at once.
Within days, I found myself prepped for an operating room. The surgeon opted for a modern approach, utilizing a laser-based procedure known as FiLaC (Fistula-tract Laser Closure) for the fistula, alongside laser treatment for the piles and fissure. The "triple surgery" was an intense but efficient process, taking between 45 minutes to an hour. My post-op journey began with a one-night stay in the hospital for monitoring, and I was discharged the following day.
The immediate aftermath required a heavy medical toolkit. I was put on a one-week course of antibiotics and regular painkillers. Once that first week passed, the heavy painkillers were scaled back to an "as-needed" (SOS) basis, but my daily routine still revolved around medication. I had to apply Anometrogyl cream diligently for over a month to aid the healing process.
Recovery became a test of patience and strict discipline, dictated by a rigid set of rules:
The Sitting Lockdown: For the first two to three weeks, sitting was strictly restricted. I only sat down briefly to eat my meals; other than that, sitting was entirely off-limits. I also completely avoided driving for the first month to protect the surgical site.
Hygiene and Comfort: Sitz baths were mandatory two to three times a day, and absolutely compulsory after every single bowel movement.
Dietary Overhaul: I committed to a strict regimen of non-spicy, home-cooked food for a month. I packed my diet with plenty of fiber and focused on high-quality, clean proteins like chicken, fish, eggs, and lentils to help my body rebuild.
Activity & Intimacy: While I made sure to walk daily to keep my circulation going, intimacy was completely off the table for the first month, and remained highly limited in frequency for the next two months.
The physical healing process was a slow, sometimes unnerving journey. For the first month post-surgery, the area drained consistently. It was a stressful symptom to manage, but gradually, the draining subsided. By the time I crossed the two-month mark, it had almost entirely stopped.
The weeks of diligence, warm baths, and careful lifestyle choices paid off. Today marked a major milestone. Today post 3 months of surgery, I walked into the surgeon's office for my check-up, and after a careful examination, he gave me the words that I don’t have any signs of recurrence and can be called as fully healed! I hope it doesn’t recur in future and I don’t have to face it anytime in future.
I was silently reading posts and messages of fellow fistula warriors during my battle so I thought that I would also share my journey so that it would give hope to other brave warriors.
Thank you!