Potential Herpes Diagnosis

[dobahaja]

Hello - About 10 days ago I visited a massage parlour and received a hand job at the end of the session.

From the postings, I have read that it is virtually impossible to contract an STD in this way; however, yesterday (about 10 days after the event), I noticed a painless red bump on the crown of my penis. I visited a doctor today, he had one look and said it looks like herpes and gave me penciclovir cream and clarytine, he noted if the symptoms start to clear as a result, then I can assume it is herpes.

With all this in mind, is it possible to catch herpes from hand-to-genital contact? Or perhaps a wet towel that was used to clean me following the event? Also, is herpes usually represented by a single small red bump - I thought it was usually clusters.

Thanks for your advice - I'm a bit confused and concerned.

[timmyboy]

A related discussion, hand job was started.

[timmyboy]

A related discussion, handjob was started.

[dobahaja]

Thanks for the confirmation.

So if the bump doesn't change in say after 3 days or so, doesn't open up or scab, is that usually not a typical characteristic of herpes?

Sorry for the ongoing questions, its just I do not completely trust the medical services that are available to me overseas.

[H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D.]

I already answered that.  No hand job ever transmits herpes, period.  Since I gave no qualifications, you can assume this applies regardless of what other body parts have been touched before.

HHH, MD

[dobahaja]

Thank you doctor. Just one more point of clarification, even if the person giving the handjob may have touched herself in the genital area, then touched me, am I still safe to assume that the virus would be dead by the time it reaches me.

As a next step, perhaps I'll get a blood test down the line to be sure. But assume that as long as this bump doesn't start blistering, etc., it's probably not what I was told today by my local doctor in China.

Thanks again for all your counsel.

[bluebird05]

I think he'll tell you an initial outbreak would be more than one and painful...also, you can't get it from a hand job or towel....probably a pimple.

[H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D.]

There is no realistic likelihood that you caught herpes from a hand job.  Perhaps it isn't herpes; if it is, it's probably a recurrent lesion, not a new infection acquired during the encounter you describe.  You are correct, most herpes shows up as clusters of more than one lesion, but single lesions also are common.

Your provider is wrong in one aspect.  Penciclovir cream probably is no better than placebo; herpes-knowledgeable providers almost never prescribe penciclovir or acyclovir cream.  Anyway, a therapeutic trial really isn't the proper strategy; if it's herpes, it's going to clear up pretty quickly, regardless of what treatment is used--so if it goes away, it doesn't mean the treatment was the reason or that the lesion in fact is herpetic.  Also, I'm not sure what "clarytine" is--but if the same as Claritin, as marketed in the US, it makes no sense for  herpes.

Regards--  HHH, MD