Other  veneral disease i.e chancroid, lymphogranuloma venereum and granuloma inguinale will be touched on briefly. The primary lesion of ulcus mole consist of papulooustule, which rapidly breaks down into a painfull ulcer with a soft margin.

The tissue destruction may be progressive, producing deep ulceration on the penis with perforation of the urethra. The lesion may also spread serpiginiously. The lymph nodes are enlarged and painful, they may degenerate and break down, to form  fistulas to the surface. Incubation period three to five days.

Diagnosis
The causal organism is Hemophilus ducreyi, a short gram negative bacterium with rounded ends. It can be distinguished by its Reenstierna test is not reliable: culturing is not routine. Histologically, the primary lesion has no diagnostic features. Consequently, the diagnosis is ulkus molle is normally based on the clinical picture and the exclusion of other disorders.

Treatment
The treatment of ulcus molle consist of sulfonamides, which differ from antibiotics in not being effective against Treponema pallidum.