genital ulcer but negative herpes test

[zuzo]

about two weeks ago I noticed a tear in my left vulva and it later turned into an ulcer like sore. The next day I had 3 more and I had myself tested for HSV and Siphilis and other std's but the results turned up as negative. By the third day I had more tears that turned into ulcers. My doc was sure that it is herpes even though the test showd negative results (twice)- my count for anti-bodies were 0.3. They treated me with famvir and it help. But i also treated it with black tea and salt at home which healed the sores within two days. The ulcers were only on my left vulva and nothing on the right. I am scared that it might be herpes but I havnt had unprotected sex with multible partners. This appeared right after shaving, swimming in the ocean and I had a yeast infection and while i had the ulcers i had my period. any idea or help? When is the best time to test for herpes?

[bubbs08]

I'm having the same thing... I haven't gotten tested yet for herpes or anything, but my doctors appointment is tomorrow morning. Although, I feel like it isn't herpes because the last time I had sex my partner and I used a condom, then a couple days later I was shaving that area but I changed the soap that I use to shave with, then went swimming in a swimming hole, then the ocean just like you did before, then later that day the sores appeared on my libia. Only a few are present but it burns when I pee, and they itch really bad. I'm hoping I don't have herpes but I guess I'll find out tomorrow... Also, you said you used black tea and salt and they healed in two days? I'm wondering if I should try that out? Any tips or anything...

[CB_28]

You should also look into Crohn's disease.  It's a form of Inflammatory Bowel disease like Ulcerative Colitis. In the beginning, it may be confused with IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) until the physical manifestations begin.  It is a disease where the intestine develops ulcers and is primarily confirmed with a colonoscopy that shows the lesions.  I've been diagnosed for 30 years, but previously they thought it was IBS.

Crohns, especially, has a high occurence of non-GI symptoms that don't appear to have a physical cause, including a type of arthritis, painful bumps on the legs and - as I've found doing my own research - ulcers in the mouth and on the vulva.  Crohns and UC are both autoimmune diseases.  I've been on Sulfasalazine for 30 years, occasional bouts with Prednisolone and lately Humira injections.  Everything helps, but nothing cures it.  Find a good (and open-minded) doctor and bring him or her some of the scientific studies on the relationship between the diseases and your symptoms, as I've had to do here in the US. That will help them understand that it is not and STD.

[muli01]

hi thanks so much for the imfo atleast I have hope now,lost all hope,no doctor seem to know whats wrong with me am always in pain when they start and they always atart before,after or during my menses,but smtimes when am stressed can go throughout the month.but my problem is am in Zambia and have no access to the Behcet's center can I tailk to the Dr online?

[Jbird28]

I need help. For the past five months I have been dealing with this unknown. It started small and mild to very painful lesson on my genitals. When I would see the do to they would say "i don't see anything ". Finally one dr saw a blister. She called in another dr and they both agreed it was herpes. She did a culture and blood test . All came back negative. I was put on valets before finding out it was negative. I was on it for 10 days. It helped a lil,but day after stopping it . It came back . It always is the the same spot. It's is very painful and no one seems to know what's going on.

[Dawlie86]

I'm 26 years old and had the same partner for 6 1/2 years. Over a year ago I went on different birth control and had a different partner. After a few months I developed what would be ulcers/lesions/canker sore type cuts on the inner lips or my vagina. Usually one, sometimes two at a time. I went to my doctor and had the lesions swabbed and tested. All three times they came back negetive for herpes and my other std tests came back clean. The last time I was tested I had a yeast infection. My doctor gave me an antibiotic and everything (including the canker sore type cuts) cleared up. Everything was fine and now 6 months later I am having the same issue. I notice that it typically occurs either right before menstration or after my vagina is irritated. (my doctor said they're most likely caused by friction, but this most recent occurance was out of nowhere).

Beginning to wonder if it's related to the different birth control I'm on, changes in my cycle, yeast infections. Seems like no one really knows (including my doctor)

[Hollifull]

Last weekend i had sex and it was quite rough, i had a couple of tears each side and a big one in the middle down my vaginal entrance. I also got a yeast infection and a urinary tract infection. The tears became quite sore and turned into an ulcer. It hurt quite a lot when i would pee well a urinary tract and tears made it worse. This has happened once before, with the same sexual partner. Both times was very vigorous sex which lead to bad tears that became ulcers, urinary tract infection and a yeast infection. :-(

[kirstyxoxo]

I have recently developed a genital ulcar just a couple of days ago
im not to sure what im supposed to do
will it ever go away?
i dont really wont to go see a doctor but if i have to i will
what can i do to get rid of it for good, any ideas?
i hope this is just a one off thing
because im scared :(

[suggestions_anyone]

I had a culture test done for herpes and it came out positive, but the blood test came back negative. I had this done in November and was told that it was probably a new infection. I have never had sexual intercourse with anyone or even oral sex. The bumbs I have are in the genital area. I am confused cause one minute i read that it can be contracted through toilets, towels, drinks, etc..and then i read on other sites that say the contrary. Then I remembered that I had a colonoscopy done in September. Could I have contracted it through improperly cleaned instruments? I don't know what else to think anymore. The place where I went didnt seem dirty or anything, but I was completely out during the whole exam. any help?

[zuzo]

thank you, i will let you know how thing turns out. At least you had a baby that is such a great gift! :)

[trac777]

Yes, I had a hysterectomy a few years ago because of a lot of pain from my uterus. The Behcet's was going after my uterus after having my children, but I often had periods with no sores. All the symptoms come and go, not always together. One week I might have the sores, then another week it's the muscle pain or something.  I felt like having my period made things much worse. That doesn't mean you should go out and have that done. I didn't know what was causing my pain. If I had known at the time that it was Behcet's, I would have kept my uterus and just started treatment.

[zuzo]

:) UAE is for United Arab Emirates, I live in Dubai. Thank you for your feedback everytime. Did you ever had periods that you didnt have a trace of an ulcer? Because sometimes i get many and then months pass by without them, but there is always something whether it is dumb fingers, massive headaches, bloated and cramping colon, and my glands swell every single time that i have my period...did you ever experience that?

take care.x

[Aran31]

Thank you for getting back to me, I'll give that a try and hope it helps.

[trac777]

I'm not sure what UAE stands for, I know it can be really hard to even get to see a doctor in some places. I have been without insurance many times myself. I would ask the doctor to look this up for you. It could be very important and treatment would be simple. You might need a steroid cream for your ulcers, possibly sometimes you might need something stronger like a steroid dose pack. A medication call colchicrine or another one called cellcept could help also.

[zuzo]

hi there.

I had the ulcers on my vulva and yah the docters prescribed ointment which i used but the thing that took it away the quickest was black tea and salt. I used black SOuth african rooibos tea, but i'm sure any black tea will do the trick.

Made it in a cup with a  level tea spoon of salt and soaked cottonwool in it and gentle patted in over the ulcers. If it burns to much use less salt and dont use the water too hot, let it cool down a lot till luke warm. (or add cold water).

watch out for betadine products though, whenever i used it, the ulcers became more!
hope it works...

[zuzo]

thank you for all the help really! I was also diagnosed with IBS and still no meds help so might be... only problem is that i am living in the UAE and I do not always trust docs here... i dnt want to be judgemental, but i mentioned behcets and they didnt even know what it is! And its such a difficult illness do recognize it seems.

Glad you are doing well!

[Aran31]

Could you tell me more about treating the lesions with black tea and salt? I also have a lesion on my labia and am looking for ways to help it heal.

[trac777]

one thing with the blood tests that was abnormal for me was a slightly high white blood cell count and sometimes a very mild fever.

[trac777]

I just wanted you to know I am doing very well now that I have started treatment. I am 31 and I've had Behcet's for 15 years. Numbness in your fingers and toes is very common in Behcet's Disease. It is actually caused by peripherial nerve damge. I was at first diagnosed with fibromyalga which can also cause nerve damage, but it can also by many other things including Behcet's Disease. Other symptoms with nerve damage can be cold/hot feels, and burning pain among other things. Nerve damage can be severe in some diseases like MS that totally destroy the protective cover of the nerves. In Behcet's the nerve damage is most often mild and does not destroy the protective cover, so the nerves often are able to heal, but it takes time to heal nerves and by then you may be having a flare somewhere else in your body. So it can be cat and mouse. Lyrica can help with this type of pain. Arthritis is common is Behcet's, but it is actually a type of arthritis that causes no damage to the joints, so that is one less thing to worry about. As for the digestive tract, Behcet's seems to like to go after that area the most. Possibly because a large portion of our immune functions start there. Behcet's sores don't just happen in the mouth and gentials, but all the way through your digestive track. It is very hard to find these sores, if your doctor doesn't look for them when they are there, he may not believe this is happeing to you. One of my earliest symptoms after the sores, was bowel discomfort and painful bathroom problems on and off, no blood or anything like that. I was told it was IBS, but the medication for that only made it worse. I had a colonoscopy about a year later and I was told I had a spastic colon  and hyper something - I had looked it up at the time and the other word meant enlarged colon. That was all they saw and still assumed I had IBS. Last year I had a capsule endoscopy that saw the inflammation also, but no sores, it's not easy to find them, but they can happen. The sores don't normally cause damage like someone with Crohns's Disease would have. The worst problems are the blood vessel inflammation and central nervous system (brain and spinal cord) involvement. These things are much rarer occurances in the illness. As for the central nervous system it can cause problems with brain inflammation called aseptic (non infectious) mennigitis which can easily be treated with steriods, but it is important you watch out for it and have it checked out right away if you develop any head symptoms like fevers or headaches because it could lead to an infecton, or more commonly, nerve damage. Controling flares will greatly lower your risks of problems from vasculitis and nerve damage. Most people with Behcet's live as long as everyone else. It's really more of a question of quality of life, and that can achieved through a healthy lifestyle, rest, stress management, a good doctor and the right combination of medications. I hope you the very best.

[zuzo]

Oh and another question i meant to ask is if you ever had problems like a spastic colon by any chance?

[zuzo]

thank you so much for the detailed reply. I will do researdh on this subject because I am willing to try anything to sort this out. Did you ever feel numbness in your fingers/ arms etc?? I really hope to find out what is attacking my body. All the best, hope you are well and thnx again!

[trac777]

There is a rather serious autoimmune disease called Behcet's Syndrome. This disease's initial symptoms closely resemble the herpes virus, causing inflammation, vaginal sores, fissures, cuts, boils, or folliculitis (ingrown hairs). Other symptoms develop years later, so it is very important that you find out just what it is that is causing your symptoms. Don't be too quick to brush it off as nothing, Behcet's disease affects people of every age and every race. Also, be careful choosing a doctor, you want to see someone who know's enough to tell you what Behcet's Syndrome is all about, if they don't know that, they don't know enough to help you. It is not contagious, and it does not run in families. Visit the American Behcet's Disease Association website message board for more information.

I can't tell you exactly what is going on with you beccause I don't know enough about you, but I can tell you what  I know from seeing over a 100 different doctors over the last fifteen years trying to find out what was wrong with me. My symptoms started the way you described, at age fifteen. For ten years I was told it must be herpes even though the tests were all negative. They said that the swab just didn't pick it up or it must be something new even though I told them it wasn't.. It wasn't until I started developing other symptoms over time, that I started trying to find out more answers but I still didn't know what was going on down there had anything to do with my other problems. It wasn't a GYN that finally mentioned it. It was a digestive specialist who asked me if I had genital sores and that it might not be herpes after all. I then took the new herpes blood test that proved I never had it.  Get that test. I developed chronic fatique, muscle pain, arthritis, acne during flares, cranker sores at least 3 times a year, and then by fifteen years later I developed eye inflammation. That was what finally got me diagnosed. Doctors in the United States don't know much at all about this, the world's oldest known disease, so they are waiting until people are on deaths door before they finally start treatment. Behcet's patients believe treatment needs to start sooner for better results and for a better life in the mean time. Other cultures around the world take this disease seriously and treat it at the first sign of symptoms.  We really have to teach our medical community to inform their patients something else causes gentital sores other than STD's. Right now most doctors dont know this or are simply avoiding it. The sickest patients are making there way to the only Behcet's Center in America, in New York City for help. A Rheumotologist treats autoimmmune disorders (inflammatory disorders), they can help you. NO tests can tell if you have it. Doctors have a big problem with that. It has to be diagnosed on symptoms alone and this bothers them because they don't know enough or they don't want the responsibilty of treating this costly and time consuming illness that they cannot see. It is simple, genital sores, mouth sores, then later eye inflammation, this is what they need to see to make the diagnosis. Waiting for eye inflammation ruined my life because I was seriously sick and no one would believe me. I couldn't work and I couldn't prove why. If it wasn't for my husband, no one would have helped.  My Rheumotologist told me he didn't believe in this disease when I first met him. It took me a year with full blown symptoms to get him to change his mind. It wasn't unitl I finally developed scleritis in my eyes that he started my treat with predinzone. Behcet's is mistakenly thought to be a middle eastern and asian disease that affects only people with those genes.  It is thought by doctors to be rare in the United States. Research is showing this is all wrong. Behcet's affects people in Amercia not with middle eastern or asian genes, but rather in anyone who has any type of autoimmune disorder in their family history. It does not run in families. It is triggered but something, possibly strep throat or food poisoning, but also for unknown reasons that permantly damage the immune system. At first, you should be given antibotics to make sure you don't have some type of lingering infection, but this won't make it get better. Behcet's is a reaction your immune system will have over and over again. Genital to gential contact ( I use condoms with my husband), stress, common illness, and injury are some of the most common reasons for flares but they will also start for no reason at all. It is important to learn how to deal with stress because it can turn what would have been a mild flare into a monster. This is serious. Without treatment Behcet's attacks the vascular system (blood vessels) and most often cannot be detected by blood tests, MRI's, or CT's. At this time this type of vasculitis is normally diagnosed only during surgeries or autopsies. If it goes untreated it can cause strokes, blood clots,  anurysums,  brain inflammation, or damage to any organ in your body.

Also, yeast infections are a common problem for people with Behcet's because the immune system is damaged.