DRG Category: 348

Mean LOS: 5.5 days

Description SURGICAL: Anal and Stomal Procedures with CC

DRG Category: 394

Mean LOS: 4.7 days

Description MEDICAL: Other Digestive System Diagnoses with CC

classification section:



An anorectal abscess, sometimes called a perirectal abscess, is the formation of pus in the soft tissue that surrounds the anal canal or lower rectum. Perianal abscess is the most common form, affecting four out of five patients; ischiorectal (abscess in the ischiorectal fossa in the fatty tissue on either side of the rectum) and submucosal or high intermuscular abscesses account for most of the remaining cases of anorectal abscess. A rare form of anorectal abscess is called pelvirectal abscess, which extends deeply into pelvic regions from the rectum. In approximately half of the cases, fistulas develop without any way to predict them.

Anorectal abscesses can lead to anal fistulas, also known as fistula in ano. An anal fistula is the development of an abnormal tract or opening between the anal canal and the skin outside the anus. It should not be confused with an anal fissure, which is an elongated ulcer located just inside the anal orifice, caused by the traumatic passage of large, hard stools.