Using water jet (stream) in the toilet seat is getting common. In fact, without it, the toilet looks old-fashioned. However, original research done by us, which was recently published in a top most international journal - COLORECTAL DISEASE, shows (for the first time in the world)  that this water stream (jet) can be quite dangerous and can increase the risk of anal fissures several fold.

The water stream, especially if its speed is on the higher side, can cause injury to the front (anterior) side of the anus. A continuous injury due to the sharp stream can lead to an ulcer, which can subsequently become a fissure. This is an extremely painful condition associated with bleeding and spasm (tightness) of the anal muscles. Its treatment can be difficult, and at times the disease can get prolonged when it is termed as a chronic fissure.

We have come across several patients with a fissure on the front part of the anus and it was not getting cured with standard treatment (pain killers, sitting in tolerably warm water, laxatives and muscle relaxant creams). A few of these cases even had been operated upon with no substantial improvement. Normally, fissures (especially in males) mostly occur on the back side of the anus whereas in the patients mentioned earlier, they were atypically on the front side of the anus.

This fact and the finding that their fissure became all-right on stopping the water jet usage indicated that the water stream (jet) could be causing these anal fissures. This happens more in people who don't pay attention to the speed of the water stream (jet) and use it for a longer duration. Since water stream can cause injury, it also increases the risk of bleeding in piles patients, especially if the piles is located on the front wall of the anus where the jet stream usually hits directly.

It is recommended that water jet usage should be minimised. It should be replaced by a water shower (Health faucet)  in the toilet seats, or there should be conventional bowls. In case the water stream (jet) has to be used, it should be done along with the hands so that the brunt of pressure of the stream falls on the hands rather than on the anus.

Fissures and piles are common conditions affecting approximately one in every three persons and almost half of the population above the age of 45 years. Constipation is the major cause for both these conditions. Earlier, surgery was required in most of the patients with these conditions, but now with advancement in medical science, we are able to treat these conditions in a majority of the cases without needing any operation.