Sore on Genitals
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Reviewed By:
Yoshinori Abe, MD (Internal medicine)
Dr. Abe graduated from The University of Tokyo School of Medicine in 2015. He completed his residency at the Tokyo Metropolitan Health and Longevity Medical Center. He co-founded Ubie, Inc. in May 2017, where he currently serves as CEO & product owner at Ubie. Since December 2019, he has been a member of the Special Committee for Activation of Research in Emergency AI of the Japanese Association for Acute Medicine. | | Dr. Abe has been elected in the 2020 Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia Healthcare & Science category.
Unnati Patel, MD, MSc (GP / Family doctor)
Dr Patel graduated from the Zhejiang University School of Medicine. She worked in clinical research at the University of Illinois in Chicago and University of Nevada in Las Vegas focused on culturally adapted health interventions for preventive medicine in the community setting. Received her Master's of Science in Global Health (concentration in Health Policy) from Georgetown University, during which she worked with the WHO in Sierra Leone and Save the Children in Washington, D.C. Unnati went on to complete her family medicine residency in Chicago, Illinois at Norwegian American Hospital. | | She is currently working as a primary care physician in the city of Chicago and completing her Master's of Business Administration at the Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management and Fellowship in Leadership in Value-Based Care.
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Content updated on Jan 4, 2023
About the symptom
A genital ulcer is an open sore or break in the skin, exposing the underlying tissue, located on the genital area, which includes the vulva, penis, perianal region, or anus.
When to see a doctor
Seek professional care if you experience any of the following symptoms
Genital ulcers
Possible causes
Viral mucositis
- Hemorrhoid
Commonly known as piles, it is the swelling around the anal area where faeces is excreted from the body. These can be formed inside or outside of the anus. This is due to excessive straining or poor blood flow to the area, and can result in painless bleeding.
- Herpes simplex
Painful blisters due to infection by the herpes simplex virus. This condition can occur on the lips (cold sores) or groin (genital herpes). After the first bout of infection, the virus lies dormant in the body. If the immune system is weakened e.g. due to lack of sleep, the virus can reactivate.
- Behcet's disease
- Genital herpes
- Trichomoniasis
Related serious diseases
- Tuberculosis (TB) (including scrofuloderma)
Tuberculosis is a bacterial infection, most commonly in the lungs. Other sites of infection include the lymph nodes, intestines, and skin.
- Urethritis
- Acute HIV infection
Questions your doctor may ask about this symptom
Your doctor may ask these questions to check for this symptom
Do you have sores or erosion in your private area?
Do you have itchy skin?
Do you have any pain or tingling in the affected areas of the skin?
Do you have skin redness?
Do you have a fever?
Other Related Symptoms
Similar symptoms or complaints
Symptoms from the same body system / part
Symptoms treated by the same specialty
References
Roett MA. Genital Ulcers: Differential Diagnosis and Management. Am Fam Physician. 2020 Mar 15;101(6):355-361. PMID: 32163252.
https://www.aafp.org/pubs/afp/issues/2020/0315/p355.html
Engelkens HJ, Stolz E. Genital ulcer disease. Int J Dermatol. 1993 Mar;32(3):169-81. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-4362.1993.tb02787.x. PMID: 8444527.
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-4362.1993.tb02787.x
Parra-Sánchez M. Genital ulcers caused by herpes simplex virus. Enferm Infecc Microbiol Clin (Engl Ed). 2019 Apr;37(4):260-264. English, Spanish. doi: 10.1016/j.eimc.2018.10.020. Epub 2018 Dec 21. PMID: 30580877.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0213005X18303744?via%3Dihub
Reviewed By:
Yoshinori Abe, MD (Internal medicine)
Dr. Abe graduated from The University of Tokyo School of Medicine in 2015. He completed his residency at the Tokyo Metropolitan Health and Longevity Medical Center. He co-founded Ubie, Inc. in May 2017, where he currently serves as CEO & product owner at Ubie. Since December 2019, he has been a member of the Special Committee for Activation of Research in Emergency AI of the Japanese Association for Acute Medicine. | | Dr. Abe has been elected in the 2020 Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia Healthcare & Science category.
Unnati Patel, MD, MSc (GP / Family doctor)
Dr Patel graduated from the Zhejiang University School of Medicine. She worked in clinical research at the University of Illinois in Chicago and University of Nevada in Las Vegas focused on culturally adapted health interventions for preventive medicine in the community setting. Received her Master's of Science in Global Health (concentration in Health Policy) from Georgetown University, during which she worked with the WHO in Sierra Leone and Save the Children in Washington, D.C. Unnati went on to complete her family medicine residency in Chicago, Illinois at Norwegian American Hospital. | | She is currently working as a primary care physician in the city of Chicago and completing her Master's of Business Administration at the Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management and Fellowship in Leadership in Value-Based Care.
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Developed by doctors.
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Seiji Kanazawa, MD, PHD
Obstetrics and gynecology (OBGYN)
National Center for Child Health and Development, Japan