Single chancre on penis no sexual

Basic fact sheets are presented in plain language for individuals with general questions about sexually transmitted diseases. The content here can be syndicated added to your web site. Print Version pdf icon. Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection that can cause serious health problems if it is not treated. Syphilis is divided into stages primary, secondary, latent, and tertiary. There are different signs and symptoms associated with each stage.

Chancroid is known to spread from one individual to another solely through sexual contact. While uncommon in the western world, it is the most common cause of genital ulceration worldwide. These are only local and no systemic manifestations are present. About half of infected men have only a single ulcer. Women frequently have four or more ulcers, with fewer symptoms. The initial ulcer may be mistaken as a "hard" chancre , the typical sore of primary syphilis , as opposed to the "soft chancre" of chancroid.

Patient information: See related handout on genital ulcers , written by the authors of this article. Herpes simplex virus infection and syphilis are the most common causes of genital ulcers in the United States. Other infectious causes include chancroid, lymphogranuloma venereum, granuloma inguinale donovanosis , secondary bacterial infections, and fungi.

A year-old man presented with a nonhealing genital ulcer that persisted for six weeks. The erosion was initially small and painless, but rapidly developed into a superficial ulcer. The patient did not use condoms, but had no known history of sexually transmitted diseases. After further questioning, he admitted to having genital ulcers on the same area in the past but did not seek medical attention because they were painless and healed spontaneously. Physical examination revealed a 2-cm superficial erythematous ulcer on the shaft of the penis see accompanying figure.