Chancroid

Do you have a tender, elevated bump, or papule, that became a pus-filled, open sore with eroded or ragged edges? It is soft to the touch, a unlike a syphilis chancre that is hard or rubbery?

Chancroid is a bacterial infection that is spread through sexual contact. Chancroid is caused by a bacteria called Haemophilus ducreyi. It causes painful ulcers or sores in the genital region.

• First signs of infection appear from 3-5 days and up to 2 weeks after contact, and usually a tender, raised bump develops where the bacteria entered the body:
  – inside/outside the vagina or rectum
  – occasionally on hands, thighs or mouth
  – on the penis

Within 1-4 days the bump transforms into one or more shallow sores which break open and deepen, becoming:
– filled with pus
– inflamed
– painful
– ruptured

 

The next stage may persist for several weeks and may result in:

• a painful open sore
• purulent base of the ulcer
•  several lesions merging to form gigantic ulcers

In over half of the untreated cases the chancroid bacteria infects the lymph glands in the groin.

The lymph glands in the groin may

• swell, creating a pus-filled bulge, known as a bubo
• enlarge until they burst through the skin
• drain continuously
• remain open
• become infected by other bacteria
• may be firm or fluctuant
• may rupture or ulcerate

The typical chancroid bubo:

• appears about 1-2 weeks after the ulcer forms
• is unilateral, spherical, and painful

In men

• 1-4 sores on the penis may develop
• Buboes appear in about 50% of male patients
• The foreskin may swell

The ulcers usually are found in:

• the prepuce near the frenulum
•  coronal sulcus
• glans

 

Rectal sores may bleed and or cause pain when defecating

In women

• Buboes are uncommon in women
• Dyspareunia (painful sex)
• Dysuria (painful urination)
• Painless sores can develop on the cervix
• Several sores may develop around the vagina and rectum
• Vaginal discharge

The ulcers usually are found on the:

• Cervix
• Entrance of the vagina, particularly the fourchette
• Labia majora and minora
• Peri-anal area

Rectal sores may bleed and or cause pain when defecating