Is this herpes?

[raven123]

Hello.  This is my first post here.  I am a 27 year old male.  About 5 weeks ago, I received unprotected oral sex from a woman (vaginally, it was protected).  About 2 weeks ago, I noticed I was having some stange feelings towards the tip of my penis.  At first, it was just a tingling feeling, so I let it go and thought nothing of it.  Then, a few days later after having a bunch of water (and peeing a lot), it turned into a pain in the head of my penis.  The strange thing is, it comes and goes.  It's not a constant tingling or a constant pain.  For example, I can feel it a bit when I wake up in the morning, then I can go all morning without any discomfort, then mid-afternoon, it will come back.  Usually, this will happen when I'm sitting down and putting pressure on my lower regions.  I don't know why it always happens in the afternoons though (I work outside, so maybe the heat has something to do with it?)  I also don't pee nearly as strong as I used to (like something is blocking the flow).    It never hurts/tingles after a hot bath/shower.  If I touch/massage it at any given point during the day, usually I can't feel anything unusual.  It feels completely normal.

Anyways, I saw a urologist about it and had a STD test done.  Everything came back negative, however, I'm sure they didn't do a HSV test (which would probably come back negative anyway since it's only been 5 weeks).  He took some x-rays and a sonogram to see what was going on.  He did find that my urine was turbid (had particles in it), and that I had some calcium nodules (not sure if that's the correct medical term).  He told me that the stinging pain in my penis was due to the fact that my body isn't used to feeling pain in the prostate, so that's why my penis hurt instead.  He told me he expected a stone, so he gave me some anti-biotics to relieve the symptoms, but now, 5 days later, I'm still feeling these feelings in my penis.  I go back to see him on Monday, but I'm really worried that I may have an STD (herpes), so I decided I would come on here and ask you while I wait for my appointment.

Is there some strand or herpes that causes this symptom?  I have absolutely no visible symptoms and this has been going on for at least 2 weeks now.  Other than the fact that he found some indication that I MAY have a stone, I don't have the other typical symptoms of an enlarged prostate (like needing to pee every 5 minutes, and abdominal pain).  I do, however, have some back pain and I itch 'down there' a bit more than usual.  I felt a little better today at first, but then I did a little 'inspection'.  I started rubbing on my penis up and down to see if I would feel anything strange.  After some rubbing, I felt the slight tingle on the left side just behind the head (originally where I felt it 2 weeks ago).

Has anyone else had these symptoms?  Please give me some input/advice.  I have not eaten a solid meal in over a week now because of the feelings in my penis; it really bothers me a lot.  It's very off-putting and I lose my appetite, especially when I feel that I may have herpes.  If this is herpes, how long will it take for the tingling sensation and pain (that comes and goes throughout the day) to go away?  I have read that lysine and zinc are good non-prescribed medications; I was actually thinking about taking it to see if it makes it go away.

Please help.  I really hope that it is not herpes, but if it is, I at least need this tingling/pain to go away.  I really can't take it anymore.

Thanks to all of you for being here.  Please keep me in your prayers, and you will also be in mine.

Raven

[tricitareirei]

I just wanted to say herpes does cause nerve pain and increased or blocked urination. The problem is so many people know very little about herpes and write it off as nothing or psychological or something else. I'm a female and have had 11 doctors who told me it was DEFINITELY not herpes, but being a medical student I was rue they were just not knowledgable. Turns out I was right. I'd like to go and tell each of them how wrong they were. Imagine how many times this happens. Orally you can pass it with no symptoms and so many people think it's not a big deal. Each person experiences it differently. But, nerve pain and damage does happen and so many doctors and people simply do not believe it. My advice is to talk to a researcher at a university or college that is dealing with herpes viruses ..sometimes they know immensely more than medical doctors. Remember they are not specially trained to deal with herpes and are trained to think of it as not a big deal and to categorize it as all the same. Untrue. Also, take note that people with genetically predisposed immunodeficiency (even those who don't know) are more inclined to get worse herpes symptoms and for herpes to worsen tier disease ie rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn's disease etc.
please let me know how you are. I deal with this or try to and have had so many people talk ignorantly about things they don't know about. I am a medical student who specializes in infectious diseases so I'm not an expert but am researching.

[waqas12]

hey raven.. wats up man....i m having the same symptoms like a couple of days after unprotected sex...im also very worried man...i read all of your comments.. I havent had a heavy meal in days too .please keep in contact with me...my email is   waqas_s_98***@****    thanks!!!

[Walker561]

I have been having the same problems, they come and go. I've been having these same issues for 3 years. And it's been the same, today I was peeing and I pinched it off with my finger and it hurt! Like bad. Felt like I wa peeing fire. But I had the same symptoms that are discussed here. I'm finally going to the doctors. I had a child even after I had the symptoms. So my sperm count should be good. I'm just nervous I might have an std

[es_salch]

Hey, I'm 21. I had unprotected oral sex performed on me. I got tested for herpes 6 weeks after exposure. I got negative results. But I have some redness and a small bump on the tip of my penis that doesn't hurt or itch. Could it be herpes ?

[rockstar08]

I was wondering what is wrong here, my penis stays hard for along time for instance today was 9 hours and it hurts it gets cold around the head but its warm on dwn the shaft my girl has an iud/mirana n when we are having sex its like a niddle goin in my penis could that b a problem or Wat do you guys think it is and what do I need to do

[raven123]

Hi, Lerxst.  Not really sure what is causing the lump in your penis.  Did this happen after a sexual encounter?  I didn't know what was causing mine either but, fortunately, that symptom went away.  Did your doctor say that these symptoms you listed could be caused by Lyme?  Maybe you should go and get re-tested for it to see if the treatment took care of it.  Now that you mention it, I'm going to ask my doctor about Lyme also.

Wish I had answers for you.  All I know about my results is that I have a hepb surface antigen.  Did they test for that as well?

It could just be fibrosis.  That's what the docs told me mine was.  Ask your doctor about it.

Keep us posted.  Prayers and best wishes for you.

[Lerxst]

I'm a 40 yr old male.
I'm having symptoms very similar to these. A small ball, about the size of a pee, in the shaft of my penis. It hurts more when sitting. It almost feels like the pain is radiating up to the tip of my penis. I also have inflamation in my euruthra. I also have inflamation where the head and shaft meet.
I'm having tingling in my arms and legs, as well.
It comes and goes but its getting worse. I had a cystoscopy about 16 months ago and everything came back negative. This has been an on and off again problem. I've also experienced a few painful orgasms. It felt like the sperm couldnt get thru my eurethra.
When I had my yearly physical done, about 3 months ago, my Doctor sent out for a Lyme test and it came back positive. I was on Doxycycline for 30 days. I finished the dose about 3 weeks ago. Since then, the pain has increased and its becoming more constant. Everything else in my bloodwork came back fine, including HIV screen.
I have an appointment to see my Urologist later this week and I'm nervous as hell. I was worried about penile cancer?
Can anyone help? Thank you-C

[raven123]

Hey, Jackson.  Thanks for posting and sorry you're having to deal with symptoms.  I actually totally forgot that I started this thread until my email showed me that you posted in it.

As far as the symptoms I have listed above, I have no more tingling/burning sensation in my penis glans, and I'm urinating just fine now.  The only thing that still exists from the symptoms I posted above is the fungal infection.

I went in and retested all STD's and HIV for my conclusive results.  Herpes came back negative.  The only thing they found was a Hepatitis B surface antigen, so I've been spending most of my time in the Hepatitis B forum.

I've had other symptoms since I started this thread, including fungal infection in genital area/anus, bacterial infection in mouth, muscle twitching, swollen lymph nodes in groin and armpits).  I've gotten some good feedback from the guys over in the Hep forum.  Basically all my symptoms are identical to dysbiosis (when the body is not able to maintain its natural flora), commonly caused by a gastrointestinal infection.

When I first tested for the hep b surface antigen, they couldn't find any antibodies for it and my liver function tests were completely normal, which really stumped my doctors.  I also had a viral load of 17,000,000.  So, just recently I went back in to take the surface antigen test again (roughly 6 months after exposure), and it came back positive again.  I am waiting on my next doctor's appt to perform a complete hep b profile again (antibody test, viral load test, liver function test, ect...).

Hep B is a gastrointestinal infection.  My doctors say that hep b would not cause these symptoms; some members in the hep b community here say it can.  Is Hep B causing my symptoms??  Who knows.......just gotta wait to see my doctor again.

If you have any of the symptoms I've listed in this post, you can follow my thread over in the Hep B forum since that's where I'm spending all my time.

P.S.  If you have the symptoms I listed, they are not due to herpes so just get that out of your mind.  Herpes can also be asymptomatic, so if you're worried about it, just wait about 12 weeks and get tested for it.  If it comes back negative, forget about herpes and move on.

Best wishes and prayers you will get better.

[raven123]

Any comment Grace

[raven123]

Update Grace:  I managed to see my dermatologist today.  Basically, all that came of that appt was her prescribing me a different anti-fungal cream since the one I was using wasn't working.  My scrape/swab results taken from my scrotum did show a fungal presence, but I kind of figured they would since I'm on so many anti-biotics.  I reminded her that the itching was there before I started any meds, and she said that I initially had a fungal infection, but now it's worse due to the anti-biotics.

I had her feel the 'bump' behind the glans of my penis.  At first, she said it was normal.  I finally convinced her that I know what my 'normal' penis feels like, and the bump was new.  She told me that I could possibly have an inflamed vessel due to the gonnahrea infection.  I asked if it could be an internal wart, and she disagreed.  I came home and felt it again and, like I said in the post above this, it in fact does not feel like a round ball.  The tip of it does.  It's hard and distinctly round, but then it seems as though it flows into a tubular shape and goes back into the base of the penis.  The end of it (the round part) is the only abnormality about it.  Do you think this is a swollen vessel due to the infection?  I wasn't buying it, but I've almost ruled out wart.

What do you think it could be?  Whatever it is, it's hard and round at the end, tingles when provoked, and is causing me to have a weak urine stream.....

So, what do you think Grace?
Wart?
Swollen vessel?
Something else?

Please help me out here Grace.  I'm really starting to lose it.  I really do appreciate you taking your time to help me with all of this.  Your health is in my prayers.  God bless you.

[raven123]

Thanks grace.  Your words are comforting.  I have an appt with my dermatologist tomorrow, and I'll let u know how it goes.

I did some more feeling around last night, and I've noticed that whenever I'm erect I can feel a 'bony-like' structure at the end of my penis.....I'm assuming that this is some kind of tube that makes the penis erect??  Anyways, it's always been there, even before I've had symptoms.  I can feel it when pushing in on the head towards my abdomen.  It stops immediately behind the glans.  Anyways, while I was feeling around for this 'ball' I realized that it's possible for this ball to be connected to this bony structure.  On the night of my sexual encounter, while the intercourse was rough, I had to stop suddenly because she was extremely 'tight'.  I think it was mostly due to the angle of penetration.  It just felt like I ran my penis into a wall.  So, I changed position, and it was alright from there; didn't feel any pain or tingling after that.

Do you think that I couldve had some trauma to this bone-like structure?  If so, how did I only realize it after 3 weeks?

I hope I'm explaining myself clearly.  Is there a bone or cartilage inside the penis that resembles what I'm talking about?  Could it have been traumatized during the penetration?  The only good news I have is that I've hardly had any tingling/stinging in nearly a week, but the 'bump' is still there.

[gracefromHHP]

I don't think this is std related at all. continuing to follow up with the urologist for your symptoms is a good idea.

[raven123]

Thanks grace.  I have an appt with my dermatologist on friday.  If she is also stumped, is there any test besides a cyscoptomy (since I already had one) that will tell me what it is?

Also, in your opinion, what do you think it could be?

[jasonb44]

I am assuming you got gonorrhea via unprotected oral ?  After 10 days tests on gonorrhea should have been positive.  Are you sure you did not have any other exposure in the meantime ?

[gracefromHHP]

no you don't need an MRI.

see a dermatologist if your urologist is stumped about this bump.

[raven123]

They did a urine culture to find the gonorrhea.  I don't have any more details as far as that goes.

The thing that bothers me the most is this ball-shaped abcess behind my glans on the inside of my penis.  It's fairly small, I would say about 3-4mm in diameter.  This is where the tingling sensation is coming from.  I will say that this past week, it hasn't bothered me as much as weeks prior, but the ball is still there and I can still feel the tingle/sting from time to time, especially when seated, although not as much as before.

I've heard of people having intraurethral warts.  I mentioned this to my urologist, and he doesn't seem to think that this is the case.  What are your thoughts on this?  And what tests are there to confirm that it is/isn't a wart?  I had a cyscoptomy with my last urologist, and he said he didn't find anything, but then again, I've also heard that warts are sometimes almost invisible to the naked eye.  Could it be that the 'body' of the wart is below the urethral skin (I don't know if that makes sense or not), and that's why he didn't see anything?

Would an MRI tell me what's going on there?  In your opinion, what could this be?  Maybe a swollen 'lymph' or 'vein'?  Sorry, I'm still learning the anatomy of the male reproductive system, so still unsure about what all makes up the male penis.

Your thoughts please Grace.  I'm trying to stay calm, but I'm still very worried.

[gracefromHHP]

any idea what test they used for testing for gonorrhea?

no, it's not causing all your symptoms.

[raven123]

Update:  Just got back from the urologist with my urine test results.  Doc told me that I have gonnahrea (sp?).  I have no idea why they didn't catch it at my first urinary culture from my first urologist.  Grace, do you think that this is what is causing my red, itchy scrotum/genital area/rectum?  What about the weak urine flow?  Also, I thought gonnahrea caused a burning pain when you urinate..........I don't have that; just a tingling/stinging sensation that comes and goes throughout the day.  Dermatologist feels that this symptom may still be fungal so she did a scrape test to find out.  Should have the results in a couple days.

Also Grace, do you think that the gonnahrea is causing the tingling sensation in my penis?  The urologist seems to think they're not realated, but the dermatologist says it's possible.  I told the urologist about the bump behind the head of my penis, and he felt it for himself.  He said that he indeed felt something, but that it was not a wart of any kind (kind of gave me a 'don't be ridiculous' look after saying it).  Instead, he thought that maybe one of the tubes (I forget the name for it) had turned fibricious (sp?) due to some trauma.

That's about all for now.  I will let you know what's happening after my next appt. and let you know how the new antibiotics for the gonnahrea is working.

Until then, Grace, could you please comment on my above concerns/questions?

[raven123]

Hi, Grace.  Just wondering if you have any input on my 'new' symptoms?  Yesterday, I was feeling around, and I felt (and still feel) an abcess inside my penis (a bit smaller than a pee) at the exact location the tingling/stinging sensation is coming from.  I'm going to see my urologist again today, but do you think it could be an internal wart caused by HPV?  I know I'm just speculating here and should not worry until I see the doc, but just wondering what you think it may be (if anything at all).  There is definitely something there; I just don't know if it was there before.

Also, do you think that this tingling/stinging sensation from this particular area is from the same cause of the itchiness?

[raven123]

Thanks for posting rcmx.  I'm not sure if you and I are experiencing the same issues.  Here are my exact symptoms:

1.  weak urine stream, like something is blocking the flow.

2.  off and on tingling feeling inside penis just behind the head that can turn to a stinging sensation if seated upright (but not always).

3.  Just recently noticed a red scrotum that would flake off dry skin (possibly due to the antibiotics I'm on).

4.  itching around genitals (just above genials, scrotum.......not so much the penis)

5.  Noticed a possible abcess in the exact location where the tingling/stinging comes from on my penis.  Possible internal wart???

I'm going to see my urologist again this afternoon.  The antibiotics I've been on for nearly 2 weeks are not helping (I think they're actually causing more problems).  He knows about the red, flaky scrotum and prescribed some anti-fungal cream/oral meds.  It seems to have gotten better in the past few days, but still there.  I'm also going to have him take a look at this 'abcess' to see if it's anything to be concerned about.  I'll let you know what I find out.  Please post whatever you find out as well!  You are in my prayers.

[rcmx]

Sorry about some of the spelling. I was typing on my phone and hit the wrong keys!!

[rcmx]

I'm having the exact same issue. I received oral and about 2 or so wks after i had a tingle/stingy feeling in the end of my penis. My scrotum area almost felt like there was presure. I have absolutely no visible symptoms of HSv. When I wake up i feel perfectly fine but as you said for some reason when I sit up right and there is pressure around my groin area I'm feling a slight pressure in my scrotum area. Its seems I'm feeling the pressure more.

[raven123]

Thanks Grace.  Out of curiosity, do/did you know anyone else who had these symptoms and how they were diagnosed?  Do you think that the dry, itchy skin and the tingling/stinging penis head, along with weak urine stream are all tied together from the same cause?


The most frustrating thing to deal with is not having a definite answer as to what's causing these symptoms.

[gracefromHHP]

it takes longer than a day to clear up fungal infections - be patient!!!