what is this?

[jay1513]

I had a sexual encounter on February 21, 2012, from which I suspect I contracted "something". My suspicion has been herpes from the start, but I need some help. At about 5 days post encounter, I didn't feel "right" down there and had a lot of heaviness in the perianal area and something that felt like jock itch (I am male). A few days later I started getting buring sensations all over by body and pins and needles (lightning zaps) feelings mostly in thighs and buttocks. My penis became ultra sensitive and itchy. When I say buring sensations all over I mean from my boxer shorts area up to my back, my arms, and up to my face, mostly on the left side. My left forearm burns everyday, as does my penis and or the area around it. My penis started getting stabbing pains and urination would sting but not be unbearably painful. I also noticed a split stream. The pains in my face were excruciating and at first felt like trigeminal neuralgia (this paid has been going away over time). I had terrible night sweats for the first several weeks and lost weight, but no fever and no noticable lymph node swelling. I am lightheaded all the time and have bad tinnitis (worse when other symptoms are worse). I have examined myself over and over.  I did not have any classic first outbreak of any lesions at all. Since then, after about the 5 month mark, I have had a few suspicious pimple like things on my penis, but no typical uler and fluid and crusting as I experience with cold sores on my lip.  I have recently had these pimple things in the fold of my penis/scrotum in the hairline on the left side, but when it goes away it just leaves skin colored bump?. My overall symptoms have gradually gotten somewhat better but kind of wax and wane and never go away completely.The one full constant seems to be a feeling in penis that will  go from slightly irritating to painful and burning. I did a full std panel test at 2 weeks and all was negative except 5.0 plus igg for hsv1 (hsv2 was .11 - herpeselect). This is no surprise as I have suffered from cold sores. I have retested for std's at 8 weeks (.03 hsv2), 12 weeks (.05 hsv2), and 16.5 weeks (.06 hsv2). During all retesting hsv1 was 5 plus. I have even retested several times for hiv, including a dna test - all negative. My last test was at over 6 months and was .05 for hsv2. I have been to urologist who suspected prostatis and have gone through rounds of doxycycline and bactrim -no relief. I have had an MRI and other tests and have been to a neurologist who can't find anything. I took Valtrex for a period of time (1 gram/day) and can't really say that I saw relief. The symptoms wax and wane from awful to bad, but never go completely away, whether on the valtrex or not. The valtrex definitely did not make anything go completely away. Lately, post 6 months, I have a lot of paresthesia feelings in my lower legs.and at night in my upper back/shoulders.

My general question is if this is not herpes, what is it? Can HSV2 cause all of these all overr body (including face) problems? Could this be some strange superinfection of either hsv2, reinfection of hsv1 or even zoster?

I am at wits end and would appreciate any advice/direction

[gracefromHHP]

you can contract hsv1 genitally when you have it orally but the odds of such are very low. also hsv1 genitally tends not to recur much at all.  

no, this doesn't sound like hpv either.

doesn't sound like trich either.

hardly anyone takes more than 6 months to seroconvert. you really need to get herpes off your mind!

grace

[jay1513]

Thank you for your reply, Grace.  I am following up with various doctors, but I have a few questions if you don't mind.  How unlikely is a reinfection, genitally, with HSV1? If one has HSV1 orally and contracts HSV2, would you expect the genital symptoms to be the same similar in terms of blistering etc as the oral symptoms? Can HPV cause any of the symptoms that I have described?  Trichomoniasis? Does the consistently low titer on the herpeselect for hsv2 mean anything in the case that I am an extreme outlier on the time that it takes me to seroconvert?

Thanks in advance.

[gracefromHHP]

your symptoms do not sound like genital herpes going on. your multiple negative tests support this.

at this point, continue to follow up with your urologist and neurologist to try to get to the bottom of it all. I wish I could say it sounds like X but really nothing more specific than the prostatitis you've already been treated for comes to mind and it sounds like you are getting proper work ups.

grace