Questions Your Doctor May Ask - and Why!
During a consultation, your doctor will use various techniques in his assesment of the symptom: Penis pain.
These may include a physical examination or other medical tests.
Your doctor may ask several questions when assessing
your condition. It is important to remember that your consultation is a two-way process and any extra information
you can share with your doctor may help them with their diagnosis.
Some of the questions your doctor may ask are listed below:
- How long have you had the penis pain?
Why: to determine if acute or chronic.
- Where exactly on the penis do you experience the pain?
- Is the penis pain unrelated to erections or passing urine?
Why: must consider kidney stones, appendicitis, anxiety, chancroid and herpes simplex.
- Is the penis pain mostly during erections?
Why: must consider Peyronie's disease or priapism.
- If the penis pain is mostly during erections, are the erections associated with sexual stimulation?
Why: If not, suggests priapism.
- Is the penis pain mostly with intercourse?
Why: Some possible causes of painful intercourse for men include an unlubricated partner, penile skin infection, penile Candida infection, genital herpes, Peyronie's disease and prostatitis.
- Does the penis pain occur mostly with urination?
Why: may suggest urethritis (due to Chlamydia or gonorrhea), cystitis (infection of the bladder), bladder stone, prostatitis, urethral stricture, bladder cancer, anal fissure or hemorrhoids.
- If the penis pain occurs mostly with urination, is the pain mostly at the end of passing urine?
Why: must consider chronic prostatitis, anal fissure, hemorrhoids or bladder stones.
- Has your penis been exposed to any new agents lately to explain a possible contact dermatitis?
Why: e.g. hygiene products, laundry detergents, soaps, latex condoms.
- Known skin allergies?
Why: e.g. soaps, laundry detergents, hygiene products, latex allergy from latex condoms.
- Has there been a recent history of excessive masturbation?
Why: Excessive masturbation may cause a mechanical urethritis (inflammation of the urethra) and consequent penis pain.
- History of trauma or damage to the penis from physical injury?
Why: e.g. cycling, horse riding, trauma during intercourse or oral sex - Injury to the urethra may cause a mechanical urethritis (inflammation of the urethra) and consequent penile pain.
- Past medical history?
Why: e.g. priapism may be associated with leukemia, metastatic cancer, sickle cell anemia or spinal cord injuries; Peyronie's disease may be associated with Dupuytren's contracture of the hand and premature atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries); Candida infection of the penis may be associated with diabetes, obesity, AIDS, Sjogren's syndrome, Severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID), Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome, polyendocrine deficiency syndrome type 1 or bone marrow transplant; Reiter's syndrome may follow a bacterial bowel infection or non-gonococcal urethritis.
- Medications?
Why: e.g. priapism may be associated with prostaglandin injections for impotence, anticoagulant medications, phenothiazines and some blood pressure medications; corticosteroids, cancer cytotoxic drugs, antibiotics can predispose to penile Candida infections.
- Sexual history?
Why: especially if involved in unsafe sex without condoms when not in a monogamous relationship which will increase the risk of sexually transmitted diseases such as herpes simplex, urethritis (due to gonorrhea or Chlamydia), chancroid and AIDS.
Questions your doctor may ask about related symptoms:
Sometimes, other symptoms may be present and may help your doctor analyse
your condition. These may include:
- Penis deformity?
Why: suggests Peyronie's disease.
- Genital ulcers?
Why: painful genital ulcers usually suggest herpes simplex virus 1 or 2. A less common cause of painful genital ulcers include chancroid (Haemophilus decreyi). Note that the primary chancre of syphilis is often painless, donovanosis (granulomona inguinale due to calymmatobacterium granulomatis) is relatively painless and lymphogranuloma venereum (due to Chlamydia trachomatis) is usually painless.
- Discharge from urethra?
Why: would suggest urethritis.
- Redness of the foreskin?
Why: suggests Balanitis (inflammation of the foreskin). This may be due to bacterial infection or Candida infection. People with diabetes and infants with wet nappies are particularly prone to this problem.
- Symptoms of Peyronie's disease?
Why: e.g. pain and crooked deformity of the penis with erections; abnormal curvature of the erect penis.
- Symptoms of Priapism?
Why: e.g. prolonged painful erection occurs, usually not associated with sexual stimulation. May be associated with leukemia, metastatic cancer, sickle cell anemia or trauma. In most cases, the cause is unknown.
- Symptoms of paraphimosis?
Why: e.g. foreskin is retracted, tight, swollen and painful. Typically occurs when the penis is erect.
- Symptoms of prostate cancer?
Why: e.g. pain with urination, weak urine stream, urinary retention (unable to urinate), urinary tract infection, erectile difficulty, pain with ejaculation, symptoms of metastases (weight loss, bone pain, numbness or weakness in legs).
- Symptoms of genital herpes?
Why: e.g. with the first attack there is a tingling or burning feeling in the genital area, then a crop of small vesicles appear and then burst after 24 hours to leave small red painful ulcers which then form scabs and heal. The glands in the groin can become swollen and tender and the person may feel unwell and have a fever. May have difficulty or pain with passing urine. With recurrent attacks, symptoms usually become milder.
- Symptoms of gonorrhea (gonococcal urethritis)?
Why: e.g. pus-like urethral discharge, pain and stinging with urination, redness around the opening of the urethra. Symptoms usually develop a few days after sexual contact. Males who have sexual intercourse with males may also have a discharge from the anus.
- Symptoms of Chlamydia (Chlamydia urethritis)?
Why: e.g. mucous-like or watery or pus-like urethral discharge which usually develops 1-3 weeks after sexual intercourse; mild stinging of the urine and discomfort in the urethra.
- Symptoms of Reiter's syndrome?
Why: e.g. urethritis (painful urination with penile discharge), conjunctivitis (red painful eyes) and painful peripheral joints. Skin lesions on palms, soles, penis and mouth.
- Symptoms of cancer of the penis?
Why: e.g. blood stained or foul smelling discharge from a lesion on the penis. The lesion is usually a nodular warty growth or an ulcer which may be painful especially if it is infected. There may also be enlarged lymph nodes in the groin. Cancer of the penis is rarely seen in uncircumcised men.
- Symptoms of Balanitis?
Why: e.g. soreness, irritation and a discharge from under the folds of the foreskin, swelling of the foreskin. May be caused by complications of gonorrhea, trichomoniasis, candidiasis, herpes simplex, syphilis, Reiter's syndrome, contact dermatitis, psoriasis, lichen planus or seborrheic dermatitis.
» Next page: Types of Penis pain
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