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Is this Herpes?
Dear Doctor:
Around three and a half months ago, I began to have severe pains while urinating. My vagina felt raw so I applied petroleum jelly. The pain took two weeks to go away. I attributed it to the stress during college midterms. However, the vaginal problems did not disappear. About three months ago I noticed a small bump near my bikini line. It had an ingrown hair in it - so I pulled it out without sanitizing the area and thought nothing more of it.
A week later, I noticed another small bump but this one looked much different. It was perfectly round and looked like a boil. It did not hurt but there was a minor itch. I left it alone and assumed that it would go away. I believe I increased the infection by shaving throughout that area on a weekly basis. Two days after the bump appeared, I went in for dental surgery and returned with a heavy dose of antibiotics and pain medication. I typically do not have a good reaction to antibiotics, sometimes nearly allergic, - so my mind was preoccupied while I battled my symptoms. The boils began to grow into little colonies as time went on - some seemed to fuse together. They have remained localized for the most part - remaining within an inch of each other. During the time that I was on antibiotics, the infection increased. It only got worse when I had to go in for dental surgery a second time - which was a month later. This time my reaction to the antibiotics was so bad that I had severe chest pains. I am not sure if most of this is relevant to the infection on my frontal pubic area - but I just want to detail my entire case.
As for my personal life, I have had two partners. My second partner cheated on me about eight months ago - I believe that is the cause of my symptoms. I have tested negative for STDs but have yet to go in for blood work for herpes. I am very healthy but have recently been under a tremendous amount of stress which I attribute to MCATs.
Please help!
Around three and a half months ago, I began to have severe pains while urinating. My vagina felt raw so I applied petroleum jelly. The pain took two weeks to go away. I attributed it to the stress during college midterms. However, the vaginal problems did not disappear. About three months ago I noticed a small bump near my bikini line. It had an ingrown hair in it - so I pulled it out without sanitizing the area and thought nothing more of it.
A week later, I noticed another small bump but this one looked much different. It was perfectly round and looked like a boil. It did not hurt but there was a minor itch. I left it alone and assumed that it would go away. I believe I increased the infection by shaving throughout that area on a weekly basis. Two days after the bump appeared, I went in for dental surgery and returned with a heavy dose of antibiotics and pain medication. I typically do not have a good reaction to antibiotics, sometimes nearly allergic, - so my mind was preoccupied while I battled my symptoms. The boils began to grow into little colonies as time went on - some seemed to fuse together. They have remained localized for the most part - remaining within an inch of each other. During the time that I was on antibiotics, the infection increased. It only got worse when I had to go in for dental surgery a second time - which was a month later. This time my reaction to the antibiotics was so bad that I had severe chest pains. I am not sure if most of this is relevant to the infection on my frontal pubic area - but I just want to detail my entire case.
As for my personal life, I have had two partners. My second partner cheated on me about eight months ago - I believe that is the cause of my symptoms. I have tested negative for STDs but have yet to go in for blood work for herpes. I am very healthy but have recently been under a tremendous amount of stress which I attribute to MCATs.
Please help!
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Presence of discharge but not open sores is more suggestive of yeast than herpes -- but still, it isn't possible to judge definitively and I hope you follow up on HSV testing.
As for the boils, you might need a prescription for an antibiotic. See a health care provider about it. Your MCAT comment suggests you are a matriculated student somewhere. Your student health clinic would be a good source for care; for reasons that should be obvious, university health clinics tend to be highly expert in STDs and genital area infections.
Good luck.
As for the boils, you might need a prescription for an antibiotic. See a health care provider about it. Your MCAT comment suggests you are a matriculated student somewhere. Your student health clinic would be a good source for care; for reasons that should be obvious, university health clinics tend to be highly expert in STDs and genital area infections.
Good luck.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Welcome to the STD froum. I'll try to help.
Apparently you didn't see a provider when you were having the painful urination and "raw" feeling of the vaginal area. That's too bad; it likely would have revealed an obvious cause. Now you are in the realm of educated guesswork.
The most common causes of those initial symptoms are genital herpes and yeast infection. Painful urination also can be caused by chlamydia, gonorrhea, and a non-sexually transmitted urinary tract infection (UTI), but those generally don't cause genital pain or rawness. If you had herpes, most likely there would have been multiple sores or ulcers -- but those could have been missed, especially if you didn't examine yourself with a mirror. That you had more than one partner at that time, and that at least one of them had sex with other persons, certainly suggests you are at high risk for herpes, so I am quite concerned about that possibility.
The other symptoms -- the skin bumps that apparently are primarily in hair-bearing areas -- probably are not any STD. Such symptoms usually are due to folliculitis (hair follicle infection), and that's clearly the explanation for the lesion that surrounded a hair. Folliculitis is typically caused by a superficial staph or strep infection and is easily spread by shaving. In other words, this problem most likely is entirely different and unrelated to the initial burning and painful urination.
At this point, I support your apparent intent to have an HSV blood test. It takes up to 3 months for that to become positive, so the timing is OK to be tested now. Also, you should be alert to symptoms of recurrent genital herpes, which typically would show up as new genital are sores, usually involving the labia or vaginal opening but sometimes the anus, a buttock, upper thigh, etc (anywhere in the "boxer shorts" area). If that happens, see a provider immediately, within 1-2 days, for visual diagnosis plus testing for HSV by culture or a PCR test.
I hope this helps. Best wishes-- HHH, MD
Apparently you didn't see a provider when you were having the painful urination and "raw" feeling of the vaginal area. That's too bad; it likely would have revealed an obvious cause. Now you are in the realm of educated guesswork.
The most common causes of those initial symptoms are genital herpes and yeast infection. Painful urination also can be caused by chlamydia, gonorrhea, and a non-sexually transmitted urinary tract infection (UTI), but those generally don't cause genital pain or rawness. If you had herpes, most likely there would have been multiple sores or ulcers -- but those could have been missed, especially if you didn't examine yourself with a mirror. That you had more than one partner at that time, and that at least one of them had sex with other persons, certainly suggests you are at high risk for herpes, so I am quite concerned about that possibility.
The other symptoms -- the skin bumps that apparently are primarily in hair-bearing areas -- probably are not any STD. Such symptoms usually are due to folliculitis (hair follicle infection), and that's clearly the explanation for the lesion that surrounded a hair. Folliculitis is typically caused by a superficial staph or strep infection and is easily spread by shaving. In other words, this problem most likely is entirely different and unrelated to the initial burning and painful urination.
At this point, I support your apparent intent to have an HSV blood test. It takes up to 3 months for that to become positive, so the timing is OK to be tested now. Also, you should be alert to symptoms of recurrent genital herpes, which typically would show up as new genital are sores, usually involving the labia or vaginal opening but sometimes the anus, a buttock, upper thigh, etc (anywhere in the "boxer shorts" area). If that happens, see a provider immediately, within 1-2 days, for visual diagnosis plus testing for HSV by culture or a PCR test.
I hope this helps. Best wishes-- HHH, MD
Thank you for replying so soon! I will check in with a GYN. The boils did not appear until after I had the rawness - I did examine myself then but found nothing. I just had a lot of discharge which I checked for fishy smells or color but found nothing.
The boils that I have been dealing with thus far have lasted for three months. None of them have healed in the least bit. They are all located on the mons veneris.
The boils that I have been dealing with thus far have lasted for three months. None of them have healed in the least bit. They are all located on the mons veneris.
You are reading content posted in the STDs Forum
Herpes spreads by oral, vaginal and anal sex.
Herpes sores blister, then burst, scab and heal.
STIs are the most common cause of genital sores.
Millions of people are diagnosed with STDs in the U.S. each year.
STDs can't be transmitted by casual contact, like hugging or touching.
Syphilis is an STD that is transmitted by oral, genital and anal sex.
