Do I have an STD?

[FearofSTDs]

About 3 weeks ago I had an encounter with a girl after a long night at the bar and it ended with unprotected oral sex (her to me).  With the exception of kissing, that is as far as it went.  I was not worried because I was always under the impression that STDs could not be spread from mouth to penis and this was the only unprotected sexual encounter I have had so I was not worried about giving anything to her.  A few weeks later, I saw my ex after another long night at the bar and we ended up having unprotected sex with each other.  We had only been apart for about a month and she supposedly did not have any sexual encounters with anyone except for kissing in that month apart.  If I wasn't so intoxicated, I never would have taken her word and will absolutely never have unprotected sex again after the fear that I have been in since this encounter.  A few days immediately after this encounter, I had pains in my penis head and redness in the head of my penis.  After looking around the internet, I found that this can be caused from sex without enough lubrication which is a possible reason for the pain.  Now it is about a week later and the pain is slightly still there but not as bad as it originally was.  There is also red blotchiness on the head of my penis which seems to get  redder after a shower.  I have no discharge or rashes or anything like that other then the red blotchiness on the head of my penis.  I also have had to pee a lot.  For example, in the past 45 minutes I have peed 3 times.  This could because I drank a lot of coffee today, but I am unsure.  Every time I pee it is a regular amount of pee however;  it is not just  the urge and then no liquid.  Everything else seems normal but I am unsure.  I am also taking Amoxycillin right now prescribed by my doctor about a week ago for a throat thing (possibly strep);  I don't know if that means anything but I thought I would include it.  I take a multi-vitamin per day as well as a zinc pill per day.  

[FearofSTDs]

Thank you.  You are a nice man and I appreciate your help.  Have a wonderful 2009.

[Edward W Hook, MD]

I said I would not answer questions but like the fool I am, i will try again.  NGU has many causes, both viral and bacterial.  If you have symptoms, you should get them checked, not ask me on-line what is there.  If your evaluation is negative, accept the answer.  If it is not, ask the clincian who evaluates you about how to manage it. EWH

[FearofSTDs]

Last question doctor, I would greatly appreciate one more response.  I also have tingling in the head of my penis.  I read this could be an NGU virus infection.  Is there a treatment for this virus or does it go away on its own?  Thank you.

[Edward W Hook, MD]

Last comment.  Burning on urination or penile discharge.  EWH

[FearofSTDs]

Thank you.  What are the symptoms of urethritis?

[Edward W Hook, MD]

Even if your partner had an STD (any STD and it is likely she did not), most exposures to infected partners do not lead to infection.  Of the bacterial STDs only gonorrhea and nongonococcal urethritis (NGU) are transmitted through oral sex; chlamydia is not and without an obvious sore or lesion on your partner’s mouth, the chances of syphilis and herpes is likewise tiny.   If you had gotten gonorrhea or NGU you would have most likely developed symptoms of urethritis (penile infection).  

Call your local health deprtment to find out where their clinics are.  They are highly confidential and reliable.  EWH

[FearofSTDs]

Thank you.  What STDs can be transferred from the type of oral sex that I described?  I want to get tested, where can I find a local clinic if I do not want to go to my personal doctor?

[Edward W Hook, MD]

You have had two unprotected encounters in the past three weeks, one oral and one vaginal, with two different partners.  The symptoms you describe really do not sound like an STD of any sort.  STDs do not cause blotchy redness, frequent urination or pain.  There are several possible explanations for the redness you describe.  A lack of lubrication during sex can certainly cause irritation of the sort you describe which would be expected to improve over several days.  Yet another possibility is that you have a drug rash (this can occur just on the penis and amoxicillin is famous for causing rashes) or that the amoxicillin has set you up for a fungal infection of the head of your penis which can present as a red rash.  Given the number of possible causes, if it is not considerably better, it may be of benefit for you to see your health care provider or attend a local STD Clinic.

In addition, simply due to unprotected sex with 2 partners you qualify for STD "screening (testing in the absence of symptoms) because you have had multiple partners over a period of less than a year.  As a matter of personal protection, we recommend annual testing for anyone who has had two or more sex partners in the past year (we consider this to be health maintenance- we also recommend you get your blood pressure and cholesterol checked regularly).  

I suspect that what you have is not an STD but get it checked.  EWH