Aa
Possible Whitlow
I have had genital herpes for almost 8 years. I am a 24 year old woman. Recently, I masturbated during an outbreak, something I was told that I could do as long as I washed my hands after. I had no cuts or sore on my hands, at least none that were visible. Anyway, a few days ago my hands became very itchy and I developed splotchy white spots on my fingers. One of the white splotches began to feel like a blister and it started to rise a little and itch like crazy. There's no pain or swelling. I went to the doctor because my anxiety over auto-inoculating herpes whitlow was beginning to take over my life. He told me that there was absolutely no reason for him to assume that I had whitlow, gave me an anti anxiety prescription, and told me to lay off the hand sanitizer for a while. I admitted to him that I had been using it pretty excessively. He told me to come back if I develop any obvious legions. So, my question... How long does it take for a whitlow legion to develop from the first signs of blistering? Should I assume that I am in the clear since I've had this little itchy blister (more of a bump than a blister) for a few days without any real change in it? How long should it take for it to really swell up and hurt like mad??
You had this checked out by your provider who didn't think it looked like whitlow.
Whitlow hurts like a sob, not just itches. It would go from rash that itches to painful rash within a day or two of appearing.
You have a well established infection so the odds of contracting whitlow are very, very low. I only know of one person who contracted it after having a well established infection - she's an avid quilter and also is a nurse so she washes her hands a zillion times a day and ended up getting it from her hands being cracked and dry from washing and having poked her fingers quite a bit while quilting. It can happen but the odds of it happening are very low.
grace
Whitlow hurts like a sob, not just itches. It would go from rash that itches to painful rash within a day or two of appearing.
You have a well established infection so the odds of contracting whitlow are very, very low. I only know of one person who contracted it after having a well established infection - she's an avid quilter and also is a nurse so she washes her hands a zillion times a day and ended up getting it from her hands being cracked and dry from washing and having poked her fingers quite a bit while quilting. It can happen but the odds of it happening are very low.
grace
Right. I understand that. I'm wondering, though, about the timeline through which whitlow typically presents. Is it usually a teeny itchy white bump for three - four days before it explodes into awful painful sores?
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Herpes spreads by oral, vaginal and anal sex.
Herpes sores blister, then burst, scab and heal.
STIs are the most common cause of genital sores.
Millions of people are diagnosed with STDs in the U.S. each year.
STDs can't be transmitted by casual contact, like hugging or touching.
Syphilis is an STD that is transmitted by oral, genital and anal sex.
