Anal Agony

I am a 28yo white male, and for the last few weeks I have developed a pain near my anal opening. It has worsened over this time and I then noticed a squishy lump. I went to see my doctor and he said I had an abcess (abscess). It was drained and they told me the fluid was RPR positive? The lump has now returned. I am in more pain than I have ever been in and I want to know if anyone else has heard of this specific test and what it could mean.

[CalGal]

There may be more than one test with these initials, but the one I'm familiar with is the Rapid Plasma Reagin test. You can read about it here: http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=9851

If this is the correct test, you need to check with your doctor again and follow up with further treatment, if necessary. And keep in mind there can be false positives and false negatives in all testing.

If you don't understand an abbreviation a doctor, a nurse, or a lab report uses be sure to ask. It's their job to make sure the patient understands what needs to be done. Sometimes they forget they're speaking to 'laypeople.'