Boil, Ingrown Hair, Or Herpes?

I am a sexually active, 22 year old gay male.

About a week ago, I felt a single small but firm bump beneath the skin that was skin to pink colored on the lower shaft of the underside of my penis. It was not painful or itchy. It never developed into a blister or filled with pus. I did not give it another thought until today when I irritated the bump while scrubbing in the shower and it began to bleed and stung momentarily. Again, no pus that I noticed. Just a decent amount of bleeding as I was constantly running water over it in the shower. This happened about six hours ago. As of now, it is not painful to the touch nor does it itch or ooze. I do groom that area of my penis by tweezing some of the hairs that grow on the lower part of my shaft. I have had ingrown hairs in that area before, but this one concerns me because it never came to a head. It simply bled after gently scrubbing the area and left behind a small pit much like a boil after it has drained. After the bump bled, I tweezed a small hair from the border of the spot though I'm not sure that was the cause for the irritation. I have received unprotected oral from someone I am dating several times in the last three weeks though I have no reason to believe he has any STD's as we've discussed it. I have had boils on other parts of my body before as well and this seems to have followed a similar path...painless, firm bump that bled and stung when it finally burst.    

I am curious if this sounds at all like HSV-2. Or are boils common on the penile shaft? I have read varying opinions that say herpes happens in clusters while others say it can be a singular lesion. I have also read that HSV-2 is painful and will generally present itself as a pus filled blister. Nothing I've read mentions herpes blisters bleeding much. I am just not sure what information to believe. If anyone could offer guidance or advice, I would be very appreciative.

[chicagoguy89]

UPDATE:

After further inspection of the spot the next day, I noticed an entire hair trapped beneath the skin near the bump. The inflammation was due to the tip of the hair breaking through the skin a short distance from its hair follicle. I thank anyone who took the time to read my question in the hopes of providing a response, but I no longer need advice about this issue.

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
From the symptoms it looks like a boil rather than a herpes sore. Keep the area clean and apply some topical antiseptics. Also wear loose-fitting cotton clothing and use an antibacterial soap or mild soap like dove.Avoid any kind of cosmetics. Topical antibiotics such as mupirocin or neomycin containing ointment are also useful.In case the symptoms persist then oral antibiotics may be needed.Pls consult a dermatologist in that case.

It is very difficult to precisely confirm a diagnosis without examination and investigations and the answer is based on the medical information provided. For exact diagnosis, you are requested to consult your doctor. I sincerely hope that helps. Take care and please do keep me posted on how you are doing.