Bump/blister/cyst on labia minora?

For all you ladies insistent it could not possibly be an STD, but have not been tested-do NOT rule this out. The pure and simple truth is, many people with STD's are asymptomatic for years. So it's possible you could have acquired an STD years ago and simply never shown signs until now.

Also, I noticed a few women stating that they had been tested for HPV. Let me tell you right now there is no such thing as an "HPV test". The way it is "tested" for is A) someone visually examining the area for warts, or B) you have an abnormal pap smear result. If you do not have visible warts, or an abnormal pap, then they cannot conclude you have HPV.

The problem with this is a lot of women think they are getting 'tested' for it when they are NOT. You could have HPV (over 70% of the sexually active population has it, after all) and simply not have one of the wart-causing strains.

For everyone simply assuming that by virtue of only having one sexual partner over the past few months/years/decades, this alone does not rule out it being an STD. As previously said, STDs can basically sit for a long time with no signs whatsoever, but something like stress, or a bad cold could cause a flare up. The only way to be absolutely certain is to go get a test. If you are so absolutely certain it cannot be an STD, then buckle down and go get tested anyway, just to absolutely rule it out. If you haven't been tested, you cannot eliminate it as a possibility just based on only having one partner.

Ok so i'm sure it's not a STD and i am wondering if the poster above me is a guy because i'm not feeling much sympathy.

I have had these little buggers for about 10 years, i'm 26 now. i have been trying to monitor they things tht happen right before i get one and i have noticed the following:

I don't drink much water
I wear tight jeans on and off
I am on birth control but not yasmin anymore ( not for 7 or so years)
I am over weight
They tend to occur right before my period
9/10 the burst with a little help
I don't get them so much if i don't have sex and i exercise more.
I am highly stressed ( my gp said so, i feel quiet chilled out)

so thats my story i thought i would share, just to let everyone know you are not alone.

I get the same things (I think). Tiny little red blood-blisters. I looked up "blood blisters", and the net gave me an answer I can live with-

Angiokeratoma-
-sounds terrifying huh! (Ive been fearing melanoma)----BUT THEY ARE HARMLESS!!!!!!!Turns out they are really common, and if broken, they bleed....and if infected, they can bleed with pus. Im guessing that when they get bigger thats because they are infected. Most people get them. They can show up anywhere, can be removed without scarring. Some people are genetically predisposed to get them.

SO girls, look them up and click on "images" and see if they look like yours....Im feeling better than I was!!!

Thank you everyone for sharing. I feel so much less alone.

S

"I'd never experienced any of this before until I started taking Yaz. Since I starting taking Yaz 6 months ago, I've had about 4 of these cysts. Someone else posted that these breakouts coincided with her taking Yaz. Anyone else? Maybe it is just a coincidence, but if anyone else has had this response to Yaz maybe its worth switching OCPs."

That is a previous post on the other thread that I wanted to comment on. I am 26 and just noticed yesterday that I had a sore red bump in the inner right side of my labia minora. I started on Yaz a month ago but stopped due to what I thought were emotional side effects. I realized that maybe it was due to the stress in my life so I started taking the Yaz again 3 days ago. I am not sure if this is related since I noticed the bump the day after I starting taking the pills again. I have had a previous bump but it wasnt painful, it was just a bump. This is the first that is actually painful. It hurts to the touch but no burning sensation when I urinate. I do not believe that I have herpes since my boyfriend is clean. I have read most of the posts in the previous thread and glad to know I am not the only one. Hoping that me posting my experience on here will help someone else who might also be taking Yaz. Good luck to everyone!

I'm generally good and finding out information about stuff, especially health ailments but this one had me eluded. I thought it was a bartholen gland cyst but those aren't filled with blood or puss usually and they are huge and located higher up and aren't in the fleshy part of the vagina but the outer wall area between the clitoris and vaginal opening, on the left or right. Plus they just keep getting filled up and coming back.

These are red nodules that form on the labia minora, usually for me one at a time, and are sore and get to a certain size (not huge but still uncomfortable). Then when it's closer to be "ready", it starts to itch. These were like pimples but the pus would sometimes be thick. Sometimes I could see a white area with a pore looking opening and sometimes it would be a blackish area with a pore opening. After sterilizing the area and everything else, and poking through a layer or two of skin with a sterile needle, pus and blood always come out. I haven't gotten one in the same area twice that I know of yet, but I'm glad I'm not the only one and that this hits women despite age, health, weight, etc.

Stress could definitely be the cause of some of them for me, but the last two happened just before my menses and this time I had just gotten over the flu, have been dealing with 3 sick kids for over a month - so I'm sure immune system has something to do with it. Personally, I'm going to up my vitamin C intake because I haven't been eating that healthy the past several weeks. When I'm stressed out I don't want to cook and I rarely eat better. Plus, wo wants to cook dinner when you've been dealing with sick twin 2 year olds and an 8 year old all day alone, while being sick yourself! Actually I am more then convinced it has something to do with immune system for me because I never got these when I was eating strictly healthy for a year. And now that I'm eating c**p again and getting sick more often, yup.

Has anyone here ever had one of these successfully treated or removed? If so how was it treated? Did a derm remove it? I've had a stubborn cyst for over a year that continues to release puss (sometimes blood) on a daily basis. My other cysts all went away on their own after time, but I too continue with new ones from time to time. Truly these posts have been a blessing and it's nice to know we're not alone.

I have had these for years they go from the size of a zit to the size of an egg ( boy did that one kill me) anyways my doctor told me they were from ingrow hair and that I shouldn't shave there anymore and just get waxed. I have tried waxing there once very unconfortable. I still shave but I use mens veet then when I do shave its not to much to do.

I've been reading through most of the posts here and it sounds like what I have but I'm not exactly sure as well.

I'm 20 and recently (bout a week ago), I realised I have this small bump on my labia minora. It's whitish in colour and when I press it, there's not much pain and it feels hard. It's like a little pebble inside there or something. I doubt it's ingrown hair coz I don't shave, I trim it real short instead. Besides that, I have a slightly elongated labia minora. So I was wondering if it might be due to friction or something... It's not sore or itchy though.

I'd go to a doctor but I'm still a student and I dun really want my parents to worry unnecessarily bout this, so yea...

Hope someone can enlighten me..

I have been getting these for about 10 years and I am tired of it. I am angry that NO doctor from my OBGYN to my dermatologist can tell me what they are or the cause. These are not small. They range in size from a pea to my largest was about the size of a half dollar. They appear usually about a week before my period and can take up to three weeks to finally drain on their own. They are PAINFUL. Sometimes there is a large amount of puss and sometimes there is not. I find when there isn't, that area usually re-inflames right away. I have noticed that the majority of these show up in the minora that is enlarged or protrudes my majora. Tomorrow I am going to see my OBGYN yet again and tell her I want to consider minora reconstruction. I have already had the minora opened up an cauterized in an attempt to take care of this issue. That was the genius idea of my last doctor who only caused scar tissue. If cauterizing it didn't help, just cut it off. I am SICK of the pain.

So I'm 32 and have been having these "cysts" for years and years and years. I'm seen soooo many doctors from the OBGYN to an Oncologist, to a Dermatologist, even a high-fluting research doctor at National Institutes of Health in DC (having to do with a condition I have that doesn't explain this but I figured I'd asked him) I've had them biopsied only to be told it was just a lump of biologic junk and nothing they could do about it. I'm an RN. I have done my research. And like any good RN I have found the best doctors I know and picked their brains until raw. I hate these damned things! The best answers I have been able to get are the following:
1. The Bartholin Glands are located on either side of the base of the labia minora, so if the cyst is ANYWHERE else on the labia minora it is NOT a Bartholin Cyst.
2. These "cysts" are consistent with the description of Epidermoid Cysts (sometimes also called Sebaceous Cysts however there are no sebaceous glands in the labia so this is technically a misnomer.)
3. There is practically no viable research to be found on the causes, prevention and best treatment of these "cysts". I suspect this has to do with the simple fact that as a female problem it has not been looked into by the medical community (which traditionally has been a male profession, not sexism, just fact) and only now starting to be looked into.
4. I have found several references from various sites that biopsies have sometimes shown these cysts are caused by HPV and can be precancerous or cancerous, so if you haven't been checked out it might be a good idea.
5. I have also found numerous references to possible auto-immune causes, i.e. a disorder of the immune system usually caused by genetics wherein the immune system is attacking the body.

And the number one thing I know is I HATE, HATE, HATE, HATE, HATE, HATE, HATE, etc these damned things!!! They are painful. They are embarrassing. I have had to have several of them lanced and drained by the doctor and it is both physically and mentally traumatic. Absolutely no one I have talked to about this (and it's a short list because of the embarrassment factor) seems to have the first idea of how devastating these things are. Going to the doctor to have them treated is like being raped!

My best home remedy so far, which sadly is not full proof, is no matter what as soon as I notice one don't touch it! This only seems to make it angry and it gets worse. Truthfully, I'm sure fiddling with it just invites infection into an already fragile state. Second, hot sitz baths with Epsom salt every day, several times a day if possible. Fill the bathtub with enough hot water to cover your entire vaginal area, hot not warm but not hot enough to burn, you don't want to get a burn on top of it, and add 1/2 cup Epsom salt until it dissolves, then have a seat for about 15-20 minutes, then rinse off thoroughly. If doing the bath is not an option then make a moist hot compress with a clean wash cloth, also for 15-20 minutes at a time, several times a day. Make sure the area is kept clean and don't touch it! Loose fitting clothes, cotton panties, etc. This usually gets to a head within a couple days and it pops on it's own when still small, or even better open the clogged duct up and it'll just go down on it's own. This works for me about 3/4 of the time.

Anyone one else have some good tips?

well I have been researching on many websites about this problems. I would think if soooo many women had STDs it would be noted! My history is intensely chronic itch for the past 8 months. Definitely stressed, but I have always been stressed. I did have a hysterectomy 3 months before the itching started. I do have my ovaries. Before the hysterctomy i was on Seasonale daily to control fibroid bleeding. I have noted mild occasional itch in the past. I have had pustules/abscesses in the past also but few. I have only had 1 yeast infection in the past. When the itching began, I tried topical yeast ointments, neopsorin, hydrocortisone, benadryl, tea tree oil, and hemorrhoid wipes. Nothing helps long term. The itching is worse at night and is also around my anus. I have noted a dry circular area on my mons where itching gets intense (lichen?). I also started then itching under my breasts a couple of months ago. In the past I have also had 3 severe underarm abscesses and I did have one about 4 months ago. It does actually seem a bit similar, as I have the hard bumps deep under the skin and then they occasionally flare and fill with pus. The other thing I notice when I am scratching (bad me!) is that it looks like there is "dirt", except I bathe qquite regularly and wash my vaginal area before and after sex. I have not had sex often in the past 10 years. I have been tsted for STDs every 2-4 years for the past 20 years and tested negative.

My rule-outs are-an unknown bacteria, hormonal, diet (especially something in fast food would be a prime suspect), fungus (maybe not yeast but similar), or allergy.

I wish someone would do a survey and see if there are any common denominators. I'm sure all of us women can't be dirty, or have an STD, or be promiscuous LOL. Something funky is going on and someone should get twerking on a diagnosis and cure!

I'm so glad that so many other people have had this. Not glad that they've had it, but rather that I'm not alone.

Thank you so much to the RN who replied to this thread. The tips are great. I did a hot compress and it reduced the pain amazingly.

I am 17 years old and of course freaked out when I found this painful bump on my labia minora. Then I reminded myself that I'm a virgin, and there is not a way that I know of, except through birth, for a virgin to contract an STD. So, I bravely searched it on google and was pleased to discover that it is probably a cyst, and that many women have dealt with them for years. I agree with the embarrassment factor since telling my mom was certainly an interesting conversation. I just thought I would post this for any other teenage girls who have had this problem and think that it's weird for a teen. But then again, if it is weird for a teen please someone let me know. =D I'm planning on seeing the doctor if it gets worse.

Anyone have any other advice or tips to help the healing process (or at least the discomfort)?
Thanks again for everyone who shared.

My doctor told me how common these are in women. She said that they can drain them, but this is usually painful and she only recommends it if it is infected. I get them on the inside and outside (labia minora and majora). Some of you are frustrated that there is no cure, but here is why (I asked). It is like a sac that fills with pus and oil and gets infected and sometimes hurts A LOT. Think of it like a pimple. So the sack fills up. If you pop it, it makes it smaller, but sometimes that sac fills up again, hence why many of us have them over and over in the same spots. She said in extreme cases, they can surgically remove the sac, which is incredibly painful, but that should get rid of it.
My doc's tips:
Keep it clean down there. You don't get them because you are a dirty person, but it is because some of us have hormone imbalances. If you have adult acne, you probably have this sort of hormone imbalance. PCOS isn't linked because they are both cyst-like, but they are linked because PCOS causes hormone issues, and hormone issues cause more oil and such which cause more cysts. Losing weight may help some people, she said, as this helps your hormones balance better. I am not overweight though, and I still get them. I find that I get them extremely rarely when I am on birth control, but I don't like to be on birth control because I get migraines on the placebo weeks from the lack of hormone stability.
Don't touch it. Like a pimple, touching it makes it worse.
If it has formed a head, she said I can pop it, or just sit in a hot bath or use a hot compress (not a heating pad..but a hotter one). BUT if you try to pop it too soon, it can cause a nasty infection because it pops inward instead of out of you.
Wear loose clothes so you aren't irritating it.
Try to stress less. This causes your hormones to balance more.
There is a name for the condition that you get these a lot, and it is escaping me at the moment. Either way, it is usually genetic, she told me.

Good luck to you all, and good luck to me, as these suck.

I have been suffering from these for a couple of years now. At first I only got one rarely and usually within a day of sex. It would be a very small hard lump on my inner labia under the skin, would never hurt. No more than one at a time. Then it would go away after a few days. Told my obgyn and she said they can occur due to "rough" sex and said to use lubrication. Since they were so rare I did not worry about it. Well, at the beginning of this year (a week before I had an appendectomy) they have been occurring constantly. Again, usually after sex (so matter how gentle). So my husband and I have refrained from having sex to see what would happen and noticed they occur during ovulation. A couple have come to a head and popped but usually do not. They get swollen and red and kinda hard and sometimes HURT. Some are really tiny. I have gone back to the Dr., not my obgyn because she was on vacation, and the doc did drain one that was irritated, maybe pea size. She said they were sebaceous cyst and/or clogged ducts and the sack can be surgically removed. We have not gotten that far. Considering they now come up in different spots it seems silly to try and cut them out. Mine have only ever come up on my labia minora. I have one that does not seem to want to go away right now but did shrink during my last period. I have read on here how many other women treat these and have found the hot compress to be the only real helpful thing for me. Oh, and during my last doctor visit she did say one of my test said I had a bacterial imbalance and gave me antibiotics. Antibiotics did not help with the cyst though. I do think, like the post above, that this is a bacteria or hormone thing. As for my stats I am 34, STD free, overweight, sit at a desk all day, no exercise, not a great diet, not on birth control and maybe a medium on stress. Going to see my regular obgyn in a month so going to get her opinion too. Will post anything new she adds....

Like most here, I'm so thankful to have found this thread, yet sorry that we are all going through this! To those who think they're an STD, read back through the posts and see the ones from women who had these before they became sexually active, including me. I've had these since I was in my early teens, long before sexual experimentation and intercourse. I'm 32 now, and have experienced them throughout my life. I've been tested for everything under the sun several times, and like others on here, I come up clean each time and the symptoms don't mesh with typical culprits like herpes or genital warts. I've also been tested for staph, MRSA, etc. and they aren't that.

I have had them both when I was skinny and now that I'm overweight - weight has never made much of a difference for me with these. In fact, when I recently lost 40 pounds they seemed to come around more frequently. I think they are related a bit to hormonal shifts, since I tend to notice them cropping up around my menstrual cycle. I have tried using only pads, and only tampons at different times to see if there was a difference, and there was not. I have sensitive skin anyway, so I do not use any perfumed products on myself or perfumed detergents on my clothes, and have always worn only cotton underwear.

Also, I notice that they are not always the same. I get them on the outside and inside of my labia, sometimes closer to the clitoris and sometimes closer to the perenium. Sometimes they come to a head easily and pop, which gives me much relief. If they don't pop on their own after awhile, I will inch that process along with a sterile needle and notice that they go away quickly then. I use a bit of antibiotic ointment on them when I do this. Othertimes, they are much more rubbery and hard, and there is no head to be found. In these cases, I cannot pop them and just have to let them run their natural course, as painful as it is. I have had some success with Epsom salt baths for relief, but had not heard of the tea tree idea - will have to give that a try.

I called my doctor's office once about them even though I was very embarrassed, but she assured me that they are very common. I went in to see my family doctor, but she wouldn't lance it for me as it was on my labia and she preferred for an OB-GYN to do it. I went home and did it myself, since I don't have an OB-GYN.

The things that resonate with me are stress. I have a pretty stressful life, although these have occurred at times when things weren't as stressful. They definitely happen on a monthly basis, and my husband is very understanding when they occur as he knows that it's too painful to have intercourse. Someone mentioned that hers started after using the generic form of Celexa, and I take that as well although these were a problem for me long before taking antidepressants. I'm not on any form of birth control now after having a horrible reaction to Yaz. To be honest, these have reduced my sex life enough that the couple times a month we are able to have sex, we just use condoms, and aren't too worried about pregnancy because we have been talking about trying to have kids soon anyway. I avoid antibiotics as much as possible, since I tend to be allergic to them and each time I have to take one for an infection, like a sinus infection, I break out in some kind of folliculitis for awhile afterward.

I think that's it. Maybe something in here helps someone, but I can definitely say that I'm so thankful to have found this thread. I had searched on all kinds of other words like genital pimples, bumps, etc. and it wasn't until I thought about it possibly being a cyst that I found this valuable information. Hopefully if we all go back to our doctors armed with information, we'll be closer to finding a better and more permanent solution for all of us! All the best to all of you!