HomeAnswersDermatologygenital herpesDo stinging and tingling bumps on the vagina indicate genital herpes?

I have recurrent bumps on the vagina, which sting and tingle. Please help.

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The following is an actual conversation between an iCliniq user and a doctor that has been reviewed and published as a Premium Q&A.

Medically reviewed by

Dr. Sushrutha M.

Published At July 15, 2021
Reviewed AtSeptember 1, 2023

Patient's Query

Hi doctor,

I am a 28-year-old female. For years even before I had intercourse, I have been experiencing pain inside the left area of my vagina. It is dull, but I feel like something is there. I visited doctors, but they say nothing is there. It happens around my period time, ovulation, or when the penis first enters the vagina during intercourse. It even caused my left leg to hurt. But now I have more issues during my ovulation or period I get these bumps. There is a terrible stinging in the area and tingling. It goes down to my left leg. It is like a pin boring my foot bottom. Before, I used to feel like a sandy texture under the area where the sensation is. Now I have swollen bumps and skin cuts. This started last year, beginning two days after I had a bit of rough intercourse, and I took a morning-after pill (I was ovulating, and during that time, I had a mild UTI, which was normal around that time). The sensation started, and ulcers appeared. After then I kept experiencing these singular bumps like every other month. However, this month I noticed they look different. I have never been diagnosed with N STI. I have had one sexual partner for the last two years. I do not know what these bumps and sensations are, and I am a bit worried now because one time, it looked like a genital wart and the other genital herpes or even pimples. I am really confused. This is how it looks. There is a hard bump then my skin open. There is no oozing or discharge. And it heals once my hormones are normal again. There is this stabbing pain in the area before. The second file is what I recently saw. They never came like this before. I am currently on my period, so I do not know if the sanitary pad gave me a rash because it happens sometimes. They never go there either. I just felt a little itch there, and then when I woke up, I saw that this morning. Kindly give your opinion.

Hello,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

Looking at the history and the photographs (attachments removed to protect the patient's identity), It looks like you have recurrent herpes genitalis. The condition is a sexually transmitted disease (STD). So it would help if you got yourself checked up for all other STDs. How painful are these bumps, and how long they last? Please answer the questions so that I can guide you accordingly. You can also get oral herpes prescription from your specialist doctor or from our online telemedicine platform.

Patient's Query

Hi doctor,

Thank you. They are not painful, nor do they itch. They last a few days, only around my period or ovulation. I never got the clustered set. I would only get one. I have done the test for HIV, gonorrhea, and syphilis. They were all negative. Last month that showed up. Is that a genital wart? Can I have both genital warts and genital herpes? I have always been careful. The same sting and pain. What if my partner does not have these symptoms, or is he lying? Because I have never experienced this until last year beginning. How can I treat both of them? Can either one of them cause the inside of my vagina to hurt? I thought it was a non-STI ulcer caused by vulvodynia. Kindly give your opinion.

Hi,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

Yes, these look like genital warts. It would help if you also got herpes serology, HDV (hepatitis-D virus 1 and 2), IgG (immunoglobulin-G), and IgM (immunoglobulin-M). For herpes genitalis, I suggest the following medicines Tablet Acyclovir 400 mg three times a day for five days. This is for active lesions. If you want to prevent them, as in if they are occurring every month or two, then you need to take this in the following way. Take Tablet Acyclovir 400 mg twice a day. Need to be taken for more than six months. For warts, they can be removed by cautery by a dermatologist, or I suggest you use the following cream every other day for eight to twelve weeks Imiquimod 5% (Isostearic acid, Cetyl alcohol, Stearyl alcohol, White petrolatum, Polysorbate 60, Sorbitan Monostearate, Glycerin, Xanthan Gum, purified water, Benzyl Alcohol, Methylparaben, and Propylparaben) cream. I hope this was helpful.

Patient's Query

Hi doctor,

Thank you. Can I have children? I have always been careful. I do not understand how this could happen. I have constantly tested my partners. Can it, by chance, be anything else except herpes? A rash or allergic reaction. It does really hurt. No scabs are formed after. It just heals like a normal cut or so. Where I am living, I do not have access to the test. Kindly give your opinion.

Hi,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

Genital herpes heals without scar only in most cases. It looks like herpes as of now, and herpes is quite painful too. You can have children. If active lesions at the time of delivery, antiviral medications are given beforehand. I hope this was helpful.

Patient's Query

Hi doctor,

Thank you. This is not painful. I spoke to my partner, and he never experienced any of the symptoms. Before him, I was not sexually active for more than a year. So it is like three years, and only now am I experiencing this. He said he never experienced anything. These are all questions I asked and checked before a sexual relationship. Kindly guide me.

Hi,

Welcome back to icliniq.com

I might have misunderstood stinging and hurt as pain. Herpes usually burns, sting or tingle, sometimes itch too. I hope this was helpful.

Patient's Query

Hi doctor,

Thank you. Before the bump appears, I feel that tingling sensation in the leg and buttocks. Once the bump is there, it would just have a slight itchy feeling. If any pain, it is dull. It does not hurt. The ones around my anus do not hurt at all. I was surprised when I saw it this morning, just a little itch. And it is the first time I see something like that there. So what about the pain inside the left side of my vagina? I used to get this even before I had sex. Like about half an inch or an inch into the vagina. I was reading, and they said it could be endometriosis which probably can cause leg pain and tingling. Even when I touch it, I feel a dull pain. But there is nothing there. Kindly give your opinion.

Hi,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

The bumps look like herpes only clinically. The only way to confirm is herpes serology or a therapeutic trial. Clinically and history-wise, it looks like herpes. Herpes is usually characterized by tingling or stinging before the onset of lesions. Vaginal pain may be unrelated to this. A gynecologist needs to examine you for that in person. I hope this was helpful.

Patient's Query

Hi doctor,

Thank you. Does herpes cause the area to swell and feel hard also? Where the single ulcers are, it is swollen. The ones on my anal tag are beginning to flatten, but I still feel no pain there, only itching. I honestly wished this was contact dermatitis or something else concern with the vagina pain I get. Kindly help me.

Hi,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

Swelling and induration can be there. As I told you, history and clinical picture suggest herpes. To confirm, one will need a slide from ulcer or herpes serology. I hope this was helpful.

Patient's Query

Hi doctor,

Thank you. I am attaching a picture for your reference. Kindly give your opinion.

Hi,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

I am unable to appreciate the foot lesions from the picture (attachments removed to protect the patient's identity). Please get back if you have further doubts.

Patient's Query

Hi doctor,

Thank you. So with the picture, it cannot be identified? Kindly give your opinion.

Hi,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

No, I cannot. It requires a physical examination. What problem or symptoms do you have in this? Please answer the question so that I can guide you accordingly.

Patient's Query

Hi doctor,

Thank you. It is just there. It is not hard or anything. It does not hurt either. I just thought it was a skin discoloration or so. Kindly give your opinion.

Hi,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

You can apply some keratolytic cream containing urea and lactic acid, like U-lac cream (urea, lactic acid, propylene glycol, and liquid paraffin). Also, I hope you got your VDRL (Venereal disease research laboratory) and other STD (sexually transmitted disease) related to all tests done already. I hope this was helpful.

Same symptoms don't mean you have the same problem. Consult a doctor now!

Dr. Dilip Kumar Meena
Dr. Dilip Kumar Meena

Dermatology

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