Ingrown Hairs on Penis

[bigman11]

Hey Doc,

About 3 weeks ago I started noticing a few little bumps appearing on my penis.  After having sex the bumps became increasingly irritated, but didn't look any worse.  I'm fairly certain it is not an STD because I have a girlfriend and the bumps don't look like an infection of any kind.  Which leads me to believe that they're ingrown hairs from shaving my scrotum and shaft.  Having said that, my girlfriend went on vacation a week ago, and the bumps don't appear to be getting any better.  Should I be concerned?  Or do ingrown hairs just take a while to heal, and if so, what ointment do you advise me to use to expedite the recovery.

Thanks,
Big man

[bigman11]

I actually haven't been using protection, but I think the irritation from insertion might have the same effect as the condom.  Do you think a topical cream would work?

[harrald]

I am not a doctor, but I may be able to answer your question about ingrown hairs. There is a condition that affects Black men more than White men when ingrown hairs in the beard become inflamed. When I was a young man, I contracted the same condition on my penis because I used condoms and the steady putting on/putting off caused ingrown hairs on my penis' shaft to get infected. A doctor simply lanced several of the infected hair shafts, gave me a bandage and  an antibiotic, and I was cured within a week.