Concerned

[mj1919]

I recently woke up with a bizarre outbreak type rash on the shaft of my penis.  Mildly itchy at worst and no pain of any kind.  It clearly has me concerned.  I do have a picture to post but I do not see the option to add the attachment.  If anyone has any ideas as to how to post the picture here, I certainly will do so immediately.  Any help is appreciated.  Thank you.

[catinbarefeet]

Your "full blood panels," if they were the standard panels, would not have included HSV, unless you asked for it specifically.

Hang in there - for all you know, this will all result in you NOT having the virus.

[mj1919]

I know I will be OK, it just gives me a bit of anxiety at times.  Sort of fear of the unknown, if you will.  In the end though, I have to assess the true risk of having it.  Life will go on.  What bothers me though is:  How long could I have been carrying this and not known?  How many times could I take my full blood panels and not have this show up?  Could I have been carrying this for 15-20 years unknowingly?  If so, that is really scary and an unfair card dealt by life.  

[catinbarefeet]

Hang in there and be gentle with yourself. You'll be fine, regardless of the outcome.

I think your only recourse is to (a) have the IgG done at 16 weeks past your suspected exposure, or even better, have your physician order the Western Blot directly from the Virology Research Center at the University of Washington, and (b) wait until another lesion surfaces and have that swabbed immediately for a PCR DNA test, before 48 hours has passed.

Good luck to you. Keep us posted.

[mj1919]

Thank you very much for the detailed explanations here.  One key component to your response is that I have now waited too long, based on your 48 hour criteria.  I am trying to stay calm and not get to anxiety levels that are detrimental to the overall cause.  I just don't know what else this could be.  It is not jock itch, obviously not a yeast infection and doubtful it is any kind of fungus.  The one constant that I have read about regarding herpes is that the bumps are painful, sometimes extreme.  These, what I have, are not at all painful.  Today in fact, they appear to be drying out and fading away.  Sort of like an old scratch would.  I appreciate your time as you continue to walk me through this.  Thank you.

[catinbarefeet]

In my 19 years of running support groups for folks who have tested positive for HSV, I've heard every kind of presentation of first episodes of herpes. First episodes can present in a number of ways. Mine was a raging first infection, with discharge, pain, and flu-like symptoms, but no obvious lesions. My culture came back positive for HSV-2.

A new member of my online support group just told us that she had papercut-like fissures on her genitals that came back positive for HSV on a PCR swab. Many others report non-standard presentations of first episodes of herpes. They run the gamut. Per Terri Warren, up to 90% of HSV+ people are unaware they carry HSV, due to a lack of recognizable symptoms. People often mistake their primary symptoms for jock itch or a yeast infection, because there are no obvious lesions.

In fact, I just spoke to someone who wrote me privately and shared that her first symptoms were 3 small bumps on her genitals, and her IgG is a low positive, and therefore probably a recent infection.

However, your bumps could be many things besides HSV, so a swab (before 48 hours has passed) and an IgG type-specific blood test are in order, then in 16 weeks ask for a re-test. According to Dr. Anna Wald at the University of Washington (one of our top HSV researchers) 12-16 weeks is the standard amount of time the blood tests require to return a definitive result.

[mj1919]

I have not been clear here at all.  What I have is not a patch of any kind.  It is 3 small (approx 1mm in diameter) bumps, almost like minute cuts, but no blood or puss of any kind. These things are random at best.  I have never had anything like this.  Mildly and rarely itchy.  It is really weird.  Anyhow, as I said, these are not bumps "within" a patch.  These things are just kind of there.  Very odd.  Does this help a bit?

[Fleetwood20]

Medical attention and immediate swabbing is required here. Recurrences will often be a red base, circular to oval and be as small as 2-3 mm or up to 10mm. There will be at last one and typically a few bumps and, or blisters inside the patch. A first infection will quite possible have multiple patches.

If you have a single larger rash with consist sores or blisters, then fungus or bacterial causes are also possibilities.

Don't go looking for pictures as everyone is different. Further, many pictures are actually not of herpes, but of strep/staph, fungus and inflamed fordyce spots. Do not use any pictures to diagnose.

[mj1919]

Thank you for the information.  That is the thing is that I was recently tested for all of the above.  I registered a <0.5 for HSV1 but the doctor said that could be a false read or something of the sort.  Can you elaborate a bit on the clusters of which you speak and how they would present themselves.  In bunches?  This is a triangular type of thing, only 3 of them...very odd.  If you could point me to a picture or pictures, It would calm me quite a bit.  I have seen so many different pictures of Herpes that I can't tell one from the other any more.  Also, wouldn't Herpes be extremely painful?  What I have feels like a dull, infrequent itch at times.  Thanks.  

[Fleetwood20]

Herpes would present itself more often as little clusters of blisters on separate red bases. If it is a single overall rash with little sores then strep/staph is also a possibility.

You should immediately seek medical advice and request a swab of the rash be taken and properly typed for HSV1 and HSV2. Also request a blood test for IgG antibodies, type specific for HSV1 and HSV2 to understand your baseline.