Anal fissures are tiny, oval-shaped tears in the lining of the very end of your digestive tract called your anus. The symptoms are similar to those of hemorrhoids, such as bleeding and pain after moving your bowels. Straining and hard bowel movements can cause fissures, but so can soft stools and diarrhea.
A high-fiber diet that makes your stool well formed and bulky is often the best treatment for this common digestive condition. Medications to relax the anal sphincter muscles as well as topical anesthetics and sitz baths can relieve pain; however, chronic fissures may require surgery of the anal sphincter muscle.