Dry crusty skin on shaft of the penis.

[brandonofarabia]

On the shaft of my penis I have some dry crusty skin.  It does not hurt or irritate me and I have no STDs.  My girlfriend and I are sexually active, but she has no STDs either.  She had a yeast infection and go rid of it with medicine.  I had this before and it went away, but today I noticed it again. What could this be?


This discussion is related to Still convinced its herpes.

[brandonofarabia]

I asked my mother about it and she said my dad gets it too. She said that it could be the soap that I am using.

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
This dry, crusty skin can be due to dry skin. The mainstay of management is liberal use of moisturizers after washing with luke warm water. Soap should be used minimally. Moisturizers should be reapplied liberally during the day. Adding a humidifier to the central heating system of your home or using a humidifier also helps.

If the symptoms persist then please get it evaluated from a dermatologist as topical steroids may be needed.
It is very difficult to precisely confirm a diagnosis without examination and investigations and the answer is based on the medical information provided. For exact diagnosis, you are requested to consult your doctor. I sincerely hope that helps. Take care and please do keep me posted on how you are doing.