At Dr. David Shields office, we use the patented, CRH O’Regan System™, considered the “gold standard” treatment. This highly effective (99.1%), minimally invasive procedure is performed in our offices in less than a minute. If there are multiple hemorrhoids, we treat them one at a time in separate visits. During the brief and painless procedure, our physician specialist places a small rubber band around the tissue just above the hemorrhoid where there are few pain-sensitive nerve endings. Unlike traditional banding techniques that use a metal-toothed clamp to grasp the tissue, we use a gentle suction device, reducing the risk of pain and bleeding. Our banding procedure works by cutting off the blood supply to the hemorrhoid. This causes the hemorrhoid to shrink and fall off, typically within a day or so. You probably won’t even notice when this happens or be able to spot the rubber band in the toilet. Once the hemorrhoid is gone, the wound usually heals in a week or two. During the first 24 hours, some patients may experience a feeling of fullness or a dull ache in the rectum. This can typically be relieved with an over-the-counter pain medication. A remarkable 99.8% of patients treated with our method have no post-procedure pain, however. In fact, thanks to design improvements, our procedure has a ten-fold reduction in complications compared to traditional banding.