Question:
It's late and I've been up too long worrying about this to make an
account right now, but here goes. I'm a 19 year old male, and today I
discovered two lumps around the right side of my groin area. They're
no bigger than a dime and around an inch (give or take) apart. I've
been working out for a few months now, but today was the first time I
noticed them. I havn't even been that active for the past few days.
There isn't a constant pain, but when I apply pressure to the lumps
they are really tender. I'd consider my pain tolerance to be fairly
high, but this is about a 7-8 out of 10. Stretching doesn't cause
pain, walking doesn't cause pain, about the only thing that causes
pain is when I apply pressure to either lump directly. Even if I press
around the lumps I don't feel any pain. There is a slight pain when I
lay on my right side, which seemed to get worse the longer I lay
there, but like I said I've been worrying about this for awhile so it
could just be my mind making it worse than it actually was. I know
the obvious answer to all of this is call a doctor, but could this
potentially be something very serious? Or does it sound more like
something has been strained, adgitated, ect.? Any light someone could
shed on this would be great. Thank you.

Answer:
Hey Guest, how are you doing? I must say, your symptoms are very
confusing ones. But I'll give it my best shot. A lump in the groin
could be a number of things from lymph node infection to Herpes
simplex. The only way to find out for sure is to have a lab test. The
signs of more serious disorders are so alarming, you would surely have
mentioned them if they were experienced. Be very cautious not to over
look even the smallest symptom. However, to be safe, just as with a
car, we shall start with the smallest thing and then work our way up.
You would not want to buy a new transmission, when all you had to do
is change the spark plugs. My educated guess is that you could be
suffering from some type of infection in your skin (bacterial). And
concidering you work out, makes it even more possible - especially in
the groin area. Sweat is more harmful to the groin area because the
groin area contains the most sensitive skin and is the only part of
your body that does not get a lot of oxygen. When you work out,
the bacteria from your body has a hard time breathing with your pants
and underwear. Therefore, bacterial infections are more likely to
occur. Basically, the glands get clogged up. You should be able to
control this by increasing your hygine or maybe washing around your
groin area in between showers, changing your underwear twice a day,
and some antibiotics might deem helpful in case there is an infection.
Careful though, not to squeeze the bumps, they can bleed and become
irritated making them harder to go away and give you pain when they
are not squeezed. If this is not helpful, then we can upgrade to
the next condition such as lymph nodes or hernia. Good luck!
Byron bkdaniels@everchangingmedicine.com