HPV Genital Warts?

[Worrieddude225]

Dr.,

I had protected sex with a prostitute on August 1st.  About 6-7 weeks later i developed a rash on my body and i was diagnosed with folliculitis.  After that i examined my penis and noticed that there were some bumps on my scrotum.  They are still there after several months after noticing them.  I dont know if they appeared before having protected sex or after but i dont remember them being there before.  There are pictures on my profile of what they look like.   Could you please take a look and tell me if they appear to be warts.  My scrotum has been red for months and there are tiny bumps all on my scrotum but the 2-3 bigger ones are scaring me.  

[Edward W Hook, MD]

As I mentioned, I am not going to comment on your photos.  They do not substitute for an exam.

Warts can persist for long periodns (months or even years).  They are not associated with erythema (redness)/. Warts can be quite variable in apppearance.  They can be small or large and may be single or multiple. EWH

[Worrieddude225]

Sorry for consecutive posts but i have added a photo that show a close up view of what the bump looks like.  I know you dont diagnose through pictures but thiis has me worried.  Does this look like a wart?

[Worrieddude225]

Would genital warts cause my whole scrotum to be red as well? And would their be a bunch of small ones all around my scrotum then 2-3 bigger ones? When I tried to pop them originally a clear liquid came out and would they last for months?

[Edward W Hook, MD]

Welcome to our Forum.  I'll try to help provide some guidance but as a matter of policy we do not evaluate pictures of lesions on our Forum.  We have learned from past experience that attempting to evaluate skin lesions from photographs often leads to misdiagnoses.  I glanced at the pictures you sent and they are not sufficient to make a diagnosis- they should be examined in person.  My advice would be to have the lesions of concern inspected by a trained clinician who is familiar with looking at genital lesions.  I would resist any offer to treat these lesions "just in case" since knowing what they are is important to you an treating them will likely just cloud the issue.  If they do turn out to be warts (not that I think they will), that certainly isn't the end of the world.  Over 80% of sexually active Americans will have genital warts/HPV at some time.  

I doubt that the lesions you have noted are genital warts or related to the contact you had on August 1.  While HPV and warts can be transmitted despite condom use, condoms do reduce the risk of infection and the risk following a single exposure is low.  Further, it typically takes 6 months on average for genital warts to appear, not six weeks.  Finally, there are many bumps and bump-like cystic lesions which are quite normal on the scrotum.  The lesions that you describe could well be normal and have not been noticed previously.  

I hope my comments and suggestions are helpful.  EWH