Herpetiform aphthous genital ulcers misdiagnosed as herpes genitalis in a young male and their effective response to colchicine therapy

Abstract

Genital ulceration can be a source of tremendous stress to the patient, as well as to the family members, and poses a difficult and sensitive diagnostic conundrum for the clinician. Cultural taboos and social stigmas related with the disease often result in the clinician not believing the patient’s version of history and basing the diagnosis entirely upon the clinical picture, aided by diagnostic tests. The clinicians should keep in mind that sexually transmitted infections (STIs), which can cause genital ulceration are very common, but there is a long list of non-sexually acquired causes of genital ulceration, which can lead to a diagnostic dilemma, and these should be considered before labelling the patient as suffering from a STI. We present a rare case of herpetiform genital aphthous ulcers mimicking herpes genitalis and chancroid, which was misdiagnosed repeatedly, and their effective response to treatment with colchicine on subsequent identification of the correct diagnosis.