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Strange Genital Symptoms
I apologize for the length of this article, but these symptoms have been persisting for quite some time and I figured it would be time to ask for assistance.
I am an uncircumcised 21 year old male who did not have the best hygiene habits and had quite a few casual hook ups in my time. I have only ever had oral sex. Receptive and given.
On October 6th, 2015, I discovered a rash on my penis head. It was a splotchy red rash that covered the entirety of the head. Nothing seemed raised and none of them appeared as open blisters, however my first thought in my head was herpes. The rash hurt in a kind of shooting pain type of way. I foolishly got a blood test done 2 days later, not realizing at the time how long it would take for antibodies to show up in the blood. That test was negative. I also discovered a lump on my scrotum. It did not bother me; no itching no pain, and I figured it may be an enlarged sebaceous cyst. The rash persisted for about 1.5 weeks before disappearing. Around the time the rash disappeared, I developed a stinging feeling in my groin and itching on my scrotum. I've had chaffing on my thighs and scrotum before as I'm slightly overweight, but this was different. It hurt a lot more than the normal chaffing and at all times of the day. This lasted for roughly 2 months time. During this time, I developed some problems in my tongue so I went to see a physician at the university infirmary who told me it was nothing. I believed it to be oral herpes, potentially a primary outbreak (I don't think I have HSV-1, but I may have had cold sores as a child I can't be too sure), however I later discovered a few of my friends had the exact same symptoms as me. I deduced it was not oral herpes since people's symptoms don't usually appear as exactly the same. I also asked my physician about the rash and stinging feeling and she told me it did not sound like herpes and to just continue cleaning the area appropriately to alleviate the symptoms. She did not check the area at this time as that was not my reason for visit and she had other patients to see, so I took her advice and left.
I did some internet research (I know, the worst thing I could have done) and each time I did so my results yielded me to either a yeast infection or herpes so I purchased some miconazole cream at this time. I applied it to the head of my penis and the groin area. Let it be known I had no symptoms on my penis at this time, I applied it to kill of any residual bacterial overgrowth. It seemed to work in getting rid of the sting I felt in my groin.
After my initial physician visit, more symptoms arose. I began to feel inflammation on my scrotum that presented in large patches of red. I also applied the miconazole cream to this, hoping it was potentially a yeast infection that had spread to a different area. The cream did not help much. I also discovered a rash on my penis head once again. This rash looked different. As opposed to being splotchy like the first one that was full of red dots, this one was a single rash that covered the bottom half of my penis head. When I applied the miconazole cream, it seemed to lessen. I returned to the physician who told me it again looked normal, I so happened to visit the day the rash seemed to lessen. She instructed me to stop using the miconazole cream and see if my symptoms persisted. I did as instructed. They did not cease. When I stopped using the cream, the rash came back with a vengeance. It was sore and it hurt. I ignored her advice and began re-applying the cream.
Around this time, approximately 6 weeks after the initial rash, I began having symptoms around my anus and perineum. It was slightly irritated and I felt like there was an increased amount of sweat in the area. I also felt like I was having very very very minimal amounts of penile discharge. Sometimes the head of my penis felt "wet" however I only ever noticed this after sexual thoughts, so it could have been precum, I generally produce a lot of that.
I returned to the physician and she inspected my perineal area and told me everything looked normal only a little irritated. She also checked out the scrotal bump and told me that if there was no itchiness or pain associated with it, it was probably an enlarged sebaceous cyst and nothing of concern.
I then discovered a raised area in my groin. At first it felt like a pimple. I felt it and it was raised but it also felt like it had depth inside the skin, similar to a pimple. I discovered this in the evening and went to bed. The next morning I woke up and the pimple had gone and in its place there were a few raised bumps. They were slightly pink in color. They were on both sides of my groin. I went back to the infirmary and was issued a steroid cream for dermatitis. I applied it and did not see much improvement.
I did a lot of research on my symptoms, and all of my research led me to either a joined oral-genital outbreak of herpes, or a widespread yeast infection, as the symptoms on my tongue were also still persisting. As the penis rash and groin irritation were not ceasing, I looked up other treatments for yeast infections other than miconazole. I should also include that when I was using the miconazole, I was not heeding to the instructions and was applying thick coats approximately 4-6 times a day, when instruction say to use 2 light coats daily. This could be the reason the rash persisted for so long when using miconazole, I may have overused the product and developed an immunity, however I am not sure how long that takes to do. Just a guess. I began using clotramizole antifungal cream. It worked like a charm. The stinging pain stopped and the rash went away. I thought I was in the clear after using the cream for 2 days. This was around Thanksgiving time, I believe November 28th was when I stopped using the cream. However, the scotal lump is still present. Some days it shrinks in size, other days it is larger.
I thought all was well until 2 days ago I felt an itchiness in my scrotum. I thought it was potentially psychological as I was wondering about how my symptoms had disappeared so suddenly, but then the next day the rash had returned and the head of my penis was very sore to the touch, as well as the stinging feeling in my groin and persistent itchiness. I purchased some clotramizole once again and have been applying since.
So, to sum it up
Rash on penis lasted 1.5 weeks
Stinging and itching in groin
Large lump in scrotum
Itchiness on scrotum and anus
Anal irritation
Perineal irritation
Symptoms went away for 3 weeks when clotramizole was applied
Symptoms returned on 12/19/15
Other pertinent information. My physician told me to get an STD test done through the campus clinic that tests for chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, and HIV. I took that test on 11/4/15. All tests came back negative.
I should also add this information. I found out one of my old partners was HIV positive 3 days before thanksgiving, so 11/23/15. This of course made me freak out and my mind was no longer focused on the persistent genital symptoms. I thought maybe the lack of focusing on it daily made the symptoms go away because many of them could have been psychological? I now realize I do not have HIV, our last sexual encounter was in August, so the 11/4/15 test would have been accurate as a negative test, so my mind is now going back to all these thoughts about herpes, and that is when the symptoms seemed to come back.
Somebody please help me. This has by far been the most stressful 3 months of my life.
Oh I should also add that I do plan to test for HSV again in January, when it has been 3 months past the initial symptoms and I should have developed enough antibodies to show up on a blood test.
Thank you
I am an uncircumcised 21 year old male who did not have the best hygiene habits and had quite a few casual hook ups in my time. I have only ever had oral sex. Receptive and given.
On October 6th, 2015, I discovered a rash on my penis head. It was a splotchy red rash that covered the entirety of the head. Nothing seemed raised and none of them appeared as open blisters, however my first thought in my head was herpes. The rash hurt in a kind of shooting pain type of way. I foolishly got a blood test done 2 days later, not realizing at the time how long it would take for antibodies to show up in the blood. That test was negative. I also discovered a lump on my scrotum. It did not bother me; no itching no pain, and I figured it may be an enlarged sebaceous cyst. The rash persisted for about 1.5 weeks before disappearing. Around the time the rash disappeared, I developed a stinging feeling in my groin and itching on my scrotum. I've had chaffing on my thighs and scrotum before as I'm slightly overweight, but this was different. It hurt a lot more than the normal chaffing and at all times of the day. This lasted for roughly 2 months time. During this time, I developed some problems in my tongue so I went to see a physician at the university infirmary who told me it was nothing. I believed it to be oral herpes, potentially a primary outbreak (I don't think I have HSV-1, but I may have had cold sores as a child I can't be too sure), however I later discovered a few of my friends had the exact same symptoms as me. I deduced it was not oral herpes since people's symptoms don't usually appear as exactly the same. I also asked my physician about the rash and stinging feeling and she told me it did not sound like herpes and to just continue cleaning the area appropriately to alleviate the symptoms. She did not check the area at this time as that was not my reason for visit and she had other patients to see, so I took her advice and left.
I did some internet research (I know, the worst thing I could have done) and each time I did so my results yielded me to either a yeast infection or herpes so I purchased some miconazole cream at this time. I applied it to the head of my penis and the groin area. Let it be known I had no symptoms on my penis at this time, I applied it to kill of any residual bacterial overgrowth. It seemed to work in getting rid of the sting I felt in my groin.
After my initial physician visit, more symptoms arose. I began to feel inflammation on my scrotum that presented in large patches of red. I also applied the miconazole cream to this, hoping it was potentially a yeast infection that had spread to a different area. The cream did not help much. I also discovered a rash on my penis head once again. This rash looked different. As opposed to being splotchy like the first one that was full of red dots, this one was a single rash that covered the bottom half of my penis head. When I applied the miconazole cream, it seemed to lessen. I returned to the physician who told me it again looked normal, I so happened to visit the day the rash seemed to lessen. She instructed me to stop using the miconazole cream and see if my symptoms persisted. I did as instructed. They did not cease. When I stopped using the cream, the rash came back with a vengeance. It was sore and it hurt. I ignored her advice and began re-applying the cream.
Around this time, approximately 6 weeks after the initial rash, I began having symptoms around my anus and perineum. It was slightly irritated and I felt like there was an increased amount of sweat in the area. I also felt like I was having very very very minimal amounts of penile discharge. Sometimes the head of my penis felt "wet" however I only ever noticed this after sexual thoughts, so it could have been precum, I generally produce a lot of that.
I returned to the physician and she inspected my perineal area and told me everything looked normal only a little irritated. She also checked out the scrotal bump and told me that if there was no itchiness or pain associated with it, it was probably an enlarged sebaceous cyst and nothing of concern.
I then discovered a raised area in my groin. At first it felt like a pimple. I felt it and it was raised but it also felt like it had depth inside the skin, similar to a pimple. I discovered this in the evening and went to bed. The next morning I woke up and the pimple had gone and in its place there were a few raised bumps. They were slightly pink in color. They were on both sides of my groin. I went back to the infirmary and was issued a steroid cream for dermatitis. I applied it and did not see much improvement.
I did a lot of research on my symptoms, and all of my research led me to either a joined oral-genital outbreak of herpes, or a widespread yeast infection, as the symptoms on my tongue were also still persisting. As the penis rash and groin irritation were not ceasing, I looked up other treatments for yeast infections other than miconazole. I should also include that when I was using the miconazole, I was not heeding to the instructions and was applying thick coats approximately 4-6 times a day, when instruction say to use 2 light coats daily. This could be the reason the rash persisted for so long when using miconazole, I may have overused the product and developed an immunity, however I am not sure how long that takes to do. Just a guess. I began using clotramizole antifungal cream. It worked like a charm. The stinging pain stopped and the rash went away. I thought I was in the clear after using the cream for 2 days. This was around Thanksgiving time, I believe November 28th was when I stopped using the cream. However, the scotal lump is still present. Some days it shrinks in size, other days it is larger.
I thought all was well until 2 days ago I felt an itchiness in my scrotum. I thought it was potentially psychological as I was wondering about how my symptoms had disappeared so suddenly, but then the next day the rash had returned and the head of my penis was very sore to the touch, as well as the stinging feeling in my groin and persistent itchiness. I purchased some clotramizole once again and have been applying since.
So, to sum it up
Rash on penis lasted 1.5 weeks
Stinging and itching in groin
Large lump in scrotum
Itchiness on scrotum and anus
Anal irritation
Perineal irritation
Symptoms went away for 3 weeks when clotramizole was applied
Symptoms returned on 12/19/15
Other pertinent information. My physician told me to get an STD test done through the campus clinic that tests for chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, and HIV. I took that test on 11/4/15. All tests came back negative.
I should also add this information. I found out one of my old partners was HIV positive 3 days before thanksgiving, so 11/23/15. This of course made me freak out and my mind was no longer focused on the persistent genital symptoms. I thought maybe the lack of focusing on it daily made the symptoms go away because many of them could have been psychological? I now realize I do not have HIV, our last sexual encounter was in August, so the 11/4/15 test would have been accurate as a negative test, so my mind is now going back to all these thoughts about herpes, and that is when the symptoms seemed to come back.
Somebody please help me. This has by far been the most stressful 3 months of my life.
Oh I should also add that I do plan to test for HSV again in January, when it has been 3 months past the initial symptoms and I should have developed enough antibodies to show up on a blood test.
Thank you
I just wanted to post on this to give updates to anybody that may be experiencing what I went through. I finally got around to taking another test (my symptoms lasted forever but they finally went away, now I just have residual itching sometimes) but I tested positive for HSV-1. I was always pretty convinced in the back of my mind it was HSV-1, it didn't really seem like anything else to me.
Congrats on the great news!!! Fleetwood20 did a geeat job with the knowledge and advice.
I just wanted to come back and report on my status. I waited until the 3 month mark and I am happy to say I am `NEGATIVE for both HSV 1 and HSV 2
I also tested negative for HIV, but I wasn't really worried about that one
I also tested negative for HIV, but I wasn't really worried about that one
Hello, another update. I realized those small bumps I was noticing were not anything related to this and the redness of the inner foreskin was due to me continually grabbing and stretching it to try and further analyze the bumps. Everything in my genital area seems A ok as of now, except I sometimes get random shoots of discomfort, but those only last for a few seconds and generally haven't been that often. I will comment again if I have any more questions, but I will let you know of my status come test time. Thank you for all your help Fleetwood!
Hello again, so today I discovered another odd symptom that is causing me a little concern. I noticed the inner portion of my foreskin is very red. The portion I am noticing this patch of red skin is the inner part of the foreskin that lies just behind the head. When analyzing it, I noticed a few bumps. I'm not sure what they are. They don't exactly look like blisters but I can't entirely be sure if they are blisters or if they are just follicles on the exterior of my penis that I can happen to see through the skin since it is quite thin
I am going to get tested for HSV when I return home next week, but I would appreciate your input about this
I am going to get tested for HSV when I return home next week, but I would appreciate your input about this
That would be exceptionally rare, lid where are the lesions? This is shay herpes does best!
Fleetwood, you are my Christmas Angel I hope you know that, you're making me feel so much better about this whole situation!!!!
Last point and I promise I will stop bothering you (unless something severe occurs in the next couple of days), but while I was driving today I noticed some discomfort at the base of my penis, on the right side, sort of where the scrotum begins and the penis ends. As my day progressed the discomfort got worse and at times it feels like somebody is stabbing a pen into my scrotum. The rest of the scrotum is itchy. Far itchier than it has been up until this point. I'm not saying it is herpes as I trust your judgement, but just to clear my mind, could herpes cause new symptoms 5-6 days after initial symptoms began, and in a new area completely?
Last point and I promise I will stop bothering you (unless something severe occurs in the next couple of days), but while I was driving today I noticed some discomfort at the base of my penis, on the right side, sort of where the scrotum begins and the penis ends. As my day progressed the discomfort got worse and at times it feels like somebody is stabbing a pen into my scrotum. The rest of the scrotum is itchy. Far itchier than it has been up until this point. I'm not saying it is herpes as I trust your judgement, but just to clear my mind, could herpes cause new symptoms 5-6 days after initial symptoms began, and in a new area completely?
It could be multiple issues, of course. I doubt herpes is playing any role at all though as it does not cause these symptoms.
Hello again Fleetwood20! Over the past 2 days, I've been applying anti-fungal cream and hydrocortisone to my affected areas and the rash and swelling on my penis head has somewhat reduced, however the stinging pain in between my thighs hasn't really reduced. Could it be possible that I have a dual infection? Something fungal on the head of my penis and something else on my groin like herpes?
The leg rash is unrelated to herpes. It is too low for a genital issue.
There are a heap of things it could be, work through them with your doctor.
The testing you are after is a blood test for IgG antibodies, type specific for HSV1 and HSV2.
There are a heap of things it could be, work through them with your doctor.
The testing you are after is a blood test for IgG antibodies, type specific for HSV1 and HSV2.
Hello again, one thing I didn't mention before as I thought it wasn't important. During my first initial symptoms, around October 24th, I developed a tiny rash on my leg that was splotchy red patches that eventually formed scabs. I thought this was because I had visited a corn maze and had contact dermatitis. The rash returned today in the exact same spot. Just below my left knee on the inside of my leg. It's not itchy or anything right now, I'm just once again scared this could be herpes presenting in a different location. If it was herpes, would it be common to develop a second outbreak in a different location a little after the first outbreak started. I.e. leg a few days after genital symptoms popped up. Could this be something completely unrelated altogether?
Thank you for the initial reply Fleetwood20, I would like to add that I am not concerned about an HIV infection as my partner was undetectable and their was no swap of semen, and my test at 3 months came back negative. I appreciate you telling me it does not sound like herpes. That being sad, when I return to my physician, what should I ask them to test for? I'm not exactly sure what else it could be. Thanks again!
Thank you for the initial reply Fleetwood20, I would like to add that I am not concerned about an HIV infection as my partner was undetectable and their was no swap of semen, and my test at 3 months came back negative. I appreciate you telling me it does not sound like herpes. That being sad, when I return to my physician, what should I ask them to test for? I'm not exactly sure what else it could be. Thanks again!
I have read through everything and think you are stressing over possibilities that do not exist. Any STD/STI from oral sex is very low risk, especially HIV.
A urine test will eliminate any bacterial issues.
What you describe does not suggest herpes. Only HSV1 is a practical risk and you may already have this.
A urine test will eliminate any bacterial issues.
What you describe does not suggest herpes. Only HSV1 is a practical risk and you may already have this.
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You are reading content posted in the Herpes Community
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.
