herpes? fungus?

hello, this is my second time ever posting, except this time I have a new question and i swear its the last one.  I have been to the clinic 5 times in the last 7 weeks and the doctors that examined me said I didn't have herpes because I didn't have any open sores, or typical herpes outbrake.  because i didn't have any open sores they coudlnt swab for herpes, they did however swab for gon/chly and those came back negative.  my symptoms were a small pink area on my penis head that went away in 3 days, and a week later, a tiny paper cut type thing on my shaft that literally appeared after having an erection, this also didnt hurt or blister... it also went away in a couple days.  I did, however, experience burning pain on my penis head for around 6 weeks.... the doctors said that burning pain on the penis is common with bacterial infections and fungus,  but my urine was clean.......  So in other words they never found out what I had and told me I would be fine and shouldn't worry.  I know I have to wait a few months before I can have a blood test for herpes, and I will when it is time.

My question is-  when I was on the internet in search of info, I ran across the subject of male yeast infections.  There are a lot of websites that talk about something called a "spit-test".  what it is is that in the morning you spit into a glass of water and if after some time the spit is cloudy or sits in the bottom-  you are experiencing a yeast overgrowth, which can cause a yeast infection.  I tried this and sure enough my spit was very cloudy- almost brown, and sank to the bottom.        my question is,   how reliable is this?  this at home yeast test is written about all over the internet.  now I am not sure what to think, and from what ive read it is also very hard to diagnose a yeast infection when there is no sore or discharge.  I am not circumcised and it is very hot where I live, so I know these can be factors.  bellow is link to this at home yeast test, and let me know if you think its reliable or not....

http://www.adhdrelief.com/CandidaTest.html        - if you look on the internet, there are hundreds of sites that talk about this at home yeast test.  Is it reliable?   according to this test I have a yeast overgrowth and prone to a penis yeast infection,  

I am very worried about this, I have trouble sleeping-  I wish I new what is wrong down there

[gracefromHHP]

It's most helpful if you just keep adding new questions/comments to your original post instead of making a new one each time. Our read before posting info goes into this for more details.

No, you can not test for fungus by spitting into a glass as you did.

At this point your anxiety about all of this is more of an issue than anything else is. I went over with you in your original post how to follow up on the herpes aspect of things. If you are having anxiety issues or new symptoms, see your provider.

grace

[erik9]

thanks grace,  I am just nervous because i saw 5 different doctors and they never diagnosed anything.  So i am still wondering what it is and why i had burning pain on my penis for so long......The last doctor I saw was last week and she told me to come back if i get something visible that they can swab and examine, because my urine is totally clean so there is nothing much else they can do at this point.  so i guess all i can do is wait to take a blood test in a few months.    

[erik9]

grace.  It has been 2 months now and I still have mild pain and discomfort on my penis.  Some people say it is unlikely to have pain for months with herpes, and others say it is very common. and my doctors say I dont have herpes because I never had a blister.  I know I have to wait 2 more months before I can take an accurate blood test, but is there anything else I can do meanwhile?  My provider is planned parenthood and they told me to stop worrying about all this because i didnt have the texbook symptoms of herpes, which is blisters that take over a week to heal.  Should I take herpes meds just in case i do have it?  I am so tired of feeling uncomfortable down there...,  it seriously has taken over my life.  On the internet Ive read about funguses that can live inside the body for months, but my doctor said this is very uncommon...  I am so confused.  I just want this pain to go away.  I am becoming very sad, this has really ruined my life, and the worst thing is not knowing weather I have herpes or not.

In my original post I forgot to mention that in the in the first month I also experienced small rashes on my face and on my body,  I also developed gingivitis, but I think the gum infection was a reaction to antibiotics because it came right after I started taking them....
the only other std I wasnt tested for was syphilis,... they said it is very unncomon and if i didnt have chly/gohn, then i most likelly didnt need to be tested for syphilis.

Last thing.....  If I am experiencing a fungal infection, like a chronic yeast infection.. would this have shown in my urine sample that came back clean?  

im sorry for the long post.   I just cant handle feeling pain on my penis anymore,  and my doctors say I have nothing......  only a blood test in 2 months will say if it is herpes,  but I just need relief until then.   thank you if you read this grace.

[gracefromHHP]

An external fungal infection in the genital area, will not show up in the urine test they did.

This still doesn't sound at all like herpes.

If you aren't happy with what your regular provider is doing for you, seek out the opinion of someone else.

grace

[erik9]

thank you for replying grace.  in these 2 months I have visited a samsung clinic, a urologist, and planned parenthood, they all said it wasnt herpes because i didnt have a blister, but from what i have read, a lot of people with herpes dont get blisters at all..... they all tested my urine and said it is clean.  samsung clinic did my gohn/chly test which came back negative, they also saw the tiny cut I had on my shaft and said it looked nothing like herpes, and they couldnt swab it cause there was no liquid or really anything to swab.  I just have no idea what else can cause a small cut on the penis, and pain for months....  the only reason I am worried about herpes is because I tested negative for the other stds so I am kinda doing the process of elimination,  but I guess a lot of things can go wrong down there.  I will do a westblog test in november just to make sure and hopefully put this all behind me.  thank you so much grace, you have no idea how helpful your advise is.  

[gracefromHHP]

Go see a dermatologist perhaps?

grace

[erik9]

yeah maybe I should.  but the doctor said a dermatologist is also going to need something that is swab-able.......  thank you grace.

[erik9]

HI grace, so this week the small red area on my penis came back after having protected sex with my gf.  this time I went straight to a dermatologist as you suggested.  she looked up my previous medical exams and examined the area very closely.  She said that it didn't look or act like herpes when she pressed on it and pinched it ect........After I bombarded her with questions she told me that she's been practicing her profession for 26 years and deals with herpes cases fairly often.  She noticed my anxiety and decided to do a skin biopsy of the area just to see exactly what it is...  She said to expect it to Not be herpes or skin cancer related.  Thank you so much for suggesting a dermatologist grace,  she was very helpful and super informative.  The results will be in in 2 weeks,  I hope this answers my questions and I can move on with my life.

[erik9]

By the way the dermatologist is an MD, I made sure to see someone who knows their stuff......

[erik9]

Hi grace,  so I got the results back from the skin biopsy and according to this exam the red dot on my penis is not herpes!!!  the results said its dermatitis which is just a skin irritation or rash,  they dont know, however, what is causing the small skin irritation on my penis....  they also said that any skin change on genitals could be an early sign of possible hpv infection, but my dermatologist ruled that out because I never developed any sort of wart.   My question to you is,  In my case, is a blood test for herpes in a couple months still necessary?   or is a skin biopsy enough to rule herpes out?  I got the skin biopsy the day after the small red area  appeared.  thanks grace

[foofan]

sounds like you should get the test because your still gonna worry about it so just do it's worth it. i took five freakin test before i realized i was ok. thats because im a compulsive worrier so just do the test and you'll feel better.

[gracefromHHP]

I'd move on past herpes at this point.

I'm glad you found a caring doctor that  is working with you on this :)

grace

[erik9]

thank you so much grace,  you have been so helpful and informative.

[erik9]

hi grace today I am posting about a different problem,  this week I got sick and developed 3 large cold sores. one en-between my nose and upper lip, and two on my chin.  I have had cold sores before but never this big.....  i normally get a small one on my lip about once a year.....

'my question is. what can I do to make these go away asap? I visited my doctor and he prescribed me acyclovir 800gm 3 times a day for 7 days.  what else can I do?  also what could be a possibility on why I got 3 cold sores?  this has never happened, should I be worried?     when my doctor saw me I only had one but the following day I developed 2 more.  It is day 2 now, I am sure I have a long couple weeks ahead of me

[gracefromHHP]

could be a cold sore or it could be a bacterial infection. are you otherwise ill?

If these aren't markedly better in a a few days, return to the dermatologist.

grace

[erik9]

thanks grace,  yeah I had the flu, and its almost gone, I just have a cough left.  these are coldsores,  I just don't understand why they are so large this time,  I never get them like this, and I hardly ever even get them.  last time I had one was over a year ago and it was tiny.

I am taking the acyclovir and applying abreva,  is there anything else I can do?
also- how affective is acyclovir?  ive never taken it before, as ive never had such large coldsores.

[gracefromHHP]

acyclovir works way better than abreva does and costs much, much less.

it's normal to get "worse" cold sores sometimes than others. Depends on many things - your body being stressed with the flu can very well be why you got them worse this time than you typically do :(

grace

[erik9]

hi grace, its me again........  so just when i thought i could leave the thought of GH behind me... today i woke up with several red areas on my penis,  they dont hurt or blister.  just pink areas like 5 all over my penis..........  Tomorrow i will go and demand a GH blood test.  All the doctors including, dermatologists. urologist ect. told me to stop worrying about herpes because they dont look or act like herpes,  but then again,  none of them could tell me what it is........  I am so frustrated.  even with insurance Ive already spent over $1000 trying to find out what I have and its been like 6 months now.  Any ideas on what else I can do?  again, it is just pink areas that dont hurt or blister.....  the dermatologist who did a skin biopsy on me in the past said its a skin irritation,  but I have no Idea what is causing it, and why it keeps coming back-  thank you for reading grace..

[gracefromHHP]

you are better off being seen and getting a lesion culture done to be honest.

If the biopsy said irritation, why are you doubting that?

grace

[erik9]

hi grace. last time they couldnt culture it because I don't have blisters, so there is no fluid to be cultured.  same thing this time,  i just have red areas.  the reason Im second guessing the skin irritation is because the first time this happened I had pain during urination, which indicates to me that its more than just an irritation..  Im going to the clinic today to see what they say this time.  hopefully they can take some kind of culture...

[erik9]

well with my luck the clinic closed early today so i cant be seen until monday. and honestly the red areas that I got yesterday are almost gone.  this is what happens.  I get bright red areas around my penis and they go away within a few days...  I am also skeptical with blood tests because ive read so much about people who get misdiagnosed that way.  so what do you think grace?  is a blood test my best shot?  ive tested neg for all other STIs, and never tested for herpes because all the doctors said they weren't herpes by visual examination.  Gosh its been 6 months, this is really wearing me down....

[erik9]

So i got blood test results and it came out positive for hsv1 and NEG for hsv2.  this is 6 months after exposure so after 6 months I know that I dont have genital herpes.  I do however get coldsores which explian the positive hsv1.  my doctor came to the conclusion  that I have a yeast problem which can be cured.  grace thank you so much,  you have no idea how much you helped me, this was a true roller-coaster ride, and an experience that has helped me understand the importance of safe sex, or at least not sleeping around with random people....  thank you soooo much, you inform so many people and I cant thank you enough for sharing your knowledge about this topic. - erik

[gracefromHHP]

I'm glad you are finally letting go of herpes as a cause and getting better answers ( and relief! ).

grace

[erik9]

hi grace, so today i woke up sick with a cold and am worried about getting a cold sore......  what is the best way to prevent a coldsore outbreak when your immune system is weak?   is there a way to get acyclovir without a prescription.  last time it cost me an $80 clinic visit just to get a prescription for acyclovir......... thanks grace- erik

[gracefromHHP]

you can just call your regular doc and ask for a prescription to be phoned in. no need to pay for an office visit for it.

grace