[Question #686] Help please.
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101 months ago
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Thank you guys for answering my question ahead of time. I sincerely trust this forum and value the opinions of the experts.
Yesterday while I was showering, I noticed a bump and examined it in the mirror. It just looked like a pimple so I forgot about it. But then it began to hurt when I would sit or walk. The bump is on my perenium. When I looked at it again it had a big whitehead. It was still hurting this morning so I scheduled an appointment with my gyno. She looked at it & then took a culture. I freaked out and asked her if it was an std & she said "it just looks like a pimple". I asked her if it was herpes TWICE and she said no. She prescribed me an antibiotic called cephalexin that's for bacterial skin infections. She didn't seem concerned about the bump & told me if I got it again to just soak in hot water. She didn't even ask about sexual exposures or anything. I'm an extreme worrier, so even though she told me it didn't look like herpes, I asked why she cultured it & she said "to see if there is other bacteria present". I'm still worried and confused. She also said the bump was a little firm.
The bump had a huge whitehead, was very tender but didn't itch, and was a little firm. After she popped it, I looked at it and the skin looked pretty normal. It was just raised, almost like a bump was underneath the skin. But the outside skin looked fine. I have not been sexually active in 2 years.
Questions:
Do you think she would lie and tell me that it didn't look like herpes, if she really thought it was?
Does this sound like herpes?
Am i overthinking this? Should I be concerned?
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Terri Warren, RN, Nurse Practitioner
101 months ago
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Sometimes a pimple is just a pimple! I think if she thought there was any chance that this was herpes, she would have tested for that and told you she was concerned, don't you? In my experience, herpes does not look like a whitehead at all, rather a clear or cloudy water blister or an ulcer or scab. This sounds like none of these. Once the bumps was popped and the skin looked normal, that suggests a pimple. Herpes lesions would likely then become an ulcer and then scab on the perineum.
Obviously, I can't know what's going on here but from your description, it sounds like your doctor was pretty right on target here.
You might be overthinking this, yes.
Terri
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Obviously, I can't know what's going on here but from your description, it sounds like your doctor was pretty right on target here.
You might be overthinking this, yes.
Terri
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101 months ago
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Terri,
Thank you for you response! I understand what you're saying, but don't you think that it's a little weird that she cultured it, when she said TWICE that it was not herpes and just a pimple? Grant it, I am not a medical doctor and don't know all the reasons for someone to culture something. As I said before, she said she cultured the bump to see if any bacteria was present. I don't know if doctors do that or not.
The bump is a little tender still, but not as bad before the whitehead was removed. The skin still looks in tact, but if I rub the bump then a tiny red opening will appear from which the whitehead came out of, but that's it. It still does not itch or anything like that.
Questions:
1. So, you do not believe that the doctor would lie about it not looking like herpes, when in fact she cultured it?
2. Have you ever heard of a doctor culturing a bump to see if "bacteria" is present?
3. Based on everything I've told you up to this point, should I be concerned or take the doctors word when she said it was not herpes?
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Terri Warren, RN, Nurse Practitioner
101 months ago
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Sometimes if people have a lesion in the genital area that I don't think is herpes, I do culture for bacteria as some bacteria is more concerning than others.
It seems very unlikely to me that your doctor would have cultured it for herpes and not told you.
And yes, as I said above, I have definitely cultured for bacteria from a lesion that did not seem herpetic to me.
I think, unless something changes, you should go with what your doctor told you she thinks it is, yes. She was the one who saw it and I'm sure she's seen plenty of herpes in her practice, over time
Terri
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It seems very unlikely to me that your doctor would have cultured it for herpes and not told you.
And yes, as I said above, I have definitely cultured for bacteria from a lesion that did not seem herpetic to me.
I think, unless something changes, you should go with what your doctor told you she thinks it is, yes. She was the one who saw it and I'm sure she's seen plenty of herpes in her practice, over time
Terri
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101 months ago
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Terri,
I got the bump popped on Tuesday, but the bump is still slightly present today. I can feel it a little (the bump is a little raised) and there is little to no pain. I haven't had any other symptoms other than this. I'm still waiting for my doctor to call about the bacteria culture or whatever.
Do my current symptoms suggest herpes or still a pimple?
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Terri Warren, RN, Nurse Practitioner
101 months ago
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I think they suggest a pimple or a cyst or something similar but again, the professional that saw you is the one who would have the best angle on things. Honestly I think if they were at all concerned about herpes they would have done a herpes test as well as a bacterial culture. When you get your results from the bacterial culture you could ask again - "do you think that looked like it could be herpes" and see what they say, just for some added reassurance.
Terri
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Terri
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