Irritation On Penis From Exercising

I am a 36 year old male. I have been dealing with this problem for seven months. When I run 3-4 miles (I typically do this 5 days a week), it is common for me to develop an iirritation on the tip of my penis (on both back and front). When it occurs on the front of the tip of my penis, it looks like pimples, while on the back it looks like small areas of red irritation. I have been to two doctors, one who thought might be jock itch and the other was not sure. Neither thought it was an STD and both gave me different medications. Neither medication worked. What has worked over the last seven months and kept it under control is gold bond powder. I need to put it on before I exercise and after or else I will develop the irritation quickly. However, today I put the powder on before and after exercise and still developed the irritation. I am trying to bring it under control now with the powder, but overall this is a very frustrating thing to deal with. What could be the cause of this? I have exercised my whole life and only started experiencing this seven months ago. Is eczema a possibility or something else?

[Alan Rockoff, MD]

Eczema is certainly a more likely possibility than jock itch (fungus, which affects the creases of the groin, not the penis) or an STD, which this sounds nothing like.  I suggest you try using over-the-counter 1% hydrocortisone, and that you pad the affected area as effectively as you can so it won't rub when you run.  If that fails, you ought to see a dermatologist in person.

Best.

Dr. Rockoff