Introduction
Lymph nodes, popularly known as lymph glands, belong to the group of so-called lymphatic organs, including the spleen. They are therefore a part of the immune system. Lymph nodes contain the so-called lymphocytes, a subgroup of white blood cells that serve the body’s immune defense. They play an important role in the body’s defence against any infection with bacteria, viruses, parasites or fungi. A swelling of the lymph nodes behind the ear can be harmless – depending on the cause – but it can also be a sign of a malignant, more dangerous disease.
Why do lymph nodes swell?
In contact with a pathogen, the lymph nodes swell. In most cases, only the nearest lymph nodes are involved in the infection. Therefore, often only lymph nodes in this area swell.
If, for example, there is an inflammation in the mouth and throat area, there is often swelling of the lymph nodes in the area of the neck, behind the ear or even at the angle of the jaw. However, diseases are also known to cause swelling of the lymph nodes in several regions of the body. One of these diseases is the so-called Pfeiffer’s glandular fever or also called infectious mononucleosis. Furthermore, some diseases, such as Hodgkin’s disease, affect the lymph nodes or the lymphocytes themselves, which also causes swelling of the lymph nodes. Lymph node swelling is thus an expression of an active reaction of the body to an infection, inflammation or even cancer.
Cause
Swelling of lymph nodes in the area of the ear can have many different causes. A rough distinction is made between lymph nodes located in front of the ear, which are therefore medically called “preauricular”, and lymph nodes located behind the ear, which are therefore called “retroauricular”. A rubella infection, for example, can be responsible for lymph node swelling behind the ear.
Rubella is a viral disease that usually affects children between the ages of 5-15 years. In this case, the lymph nodes are initially swollen for about 1 week, followed by a fine-spotted rash, which initially begins on the head and is visible for about 3 days. If, in addition to swollen lymph nodes in the area of the ear, there is also a swelling or even pain in the parotid gland, this can also be an inflammation of the parotid gland, for example due to salivary stones.
The so-called toxoplasmosis can also cause a swelling of the lymph nodes behind the ear. The causative agent of toxoplasmosis is a so-called unicellular organism, which can be transmitted through the consumption of raw meat, cat excrement or during pregnancy. An infection can lead to headaches, fever, muscle aches and even to swelling of the lymph nodes behind the ears.
An infection with toxoplasmosis during pregnancy is dangerous because it can lead to miscarriage and malformation of the unborn child. In people who have a weakened immune system, such as AIDS patients, an inflammation of the brain can occur. Another infectious disease that can be responsible for swelling of the lymph nodes behind the ear is syphilis.
Syphilis, also known as syphilis, is a bacterial infectious disease, usually transmitted through sexual intercourse, which is chronic and in several stages. Initially, a so-called “hard chancre” on the genitals is the main symptom. This is a painless ulcer.
In the course of the disease, symptoms such as skin rashes or swelling of the lymph nodes may be added. A swelling of the lymph nodes in front of the ear can be caused by a so-called herpes zoster ophthalmicus. This is a viral infection with the varicella zoster virus, which was ingested as a child, caused chickenpox and eventually remained in the nerve cells for years.
Especially people over 60 years of age suffer from this facial herpes. At first, you usually feel a burning sensation and pain, which is followed some time later by a skin rash with blisters. This can lead to a swelling of the lymph nodes in front of the ear.
Keratoconjunctivitis (inflammation of the cornea and conjunctiva) can also cause swelling of the lymph nodes in front of the ear.An infection of the conjunctiva and cornea of the eye with adenoviruses is called keratoconjunctivitis epidemica. The disease manifests itself by sudden redness, tears and burning of the eye and a painful swelling of the lymph nodes in front of the ear. It is a highly contagious disease.
Trachoma is also characterized by swelling of the lymph nodes in front of the ear. The conjunctiva of the eye is also affected in trachoma. Trachoma is caused by a chronic infection with Chlamydia, which are bacterial pathogens.
This initially leads to an unspecific irritation of the conjunctiva with a foreign body sensation. In the further course of the disease, swelling of the cornea, corneal scars of the eye and swelling of the lymph nodes in front of the ear can develop. A typical disease that can lead to swelling of the lymph nodes in several regions of the body is Pfeiffer’s glandular fever, also known as mononucleosis.
This disease, which is transmitted by the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), can also lead to swelling of the lymph nodes in the area of the ear. The disease is accompanied by high fever, sore throat with coated tonsils and possibly swelling of the spleen. Our next topic may also be of interest to you: Lymph node swelling after OPEine allergic reaction can have various triggers.
These include medication, insect bites or pollen. Since all allergies are triggered by an overreaction of the immune system, lymph node swelling can also occur in addition to skin rash, fever or gastrointestinal reactions such as nausea or diarrhea. As already mentioned, lymph nodes swell due to a rapid multiplication of immune cells that are located in the lymph nodes.
Since the immune system reacts during an allergic reaction to a certain substance (so-called antigen) such as a component of a drug, for example, the immune system reacts against this substance by multiplying immune cells. This immune reaction can be manifested by swollen lymph nodes behind the ears or in other parts of the body. A cold of the ear, nose and throat caused by viruses or bacteria can sometimes spread to the ear.
Then, in addition to the typical cold symptoms such as sore throat, a cold, cough, fever, fatigue or headaches and aching limbs, there is also ear pain. In addition, the lymph nodes in the neck and head, and thus also behind the ears, swell up. This is because during an infection the pathogen enters the lymph nodes where, as a result of the immune reaction, the immune cells multiply rapidly to fight the germ.
This causes the lymph nodes to swell. In general, the lymph nodes behind the ear swell again after a cold, but they can also remain palpable when slightly enlarged. This is not unusual and should not cause any concern.
Swelling of the lateral neckIn general, the lymph nodes that are connected to the thyroid gland are located in the lower neck. Therefore, thyroiditis, which can be caused by viruses or bacteria, is more likely to result in swelling of the cervical (paratracheal or anterior cervical) lymph nodes. When the inflammation of the thyroid gland passes into the bloodstream or spreads to surrounding tissue, the lymph nodes behind the ear may also be swollen.
However, this happens rather rarely. The body reacts to acute and chronic stress in different ways. If short-term (acute) stress occurs, the immune system is booted in order to better protect the body from pathogens during this phase.
Since the immune system is more active and the white blood cells, which are found in the lymph nodes among other things, multiply quickly, the lymph nodes can also swell temporarily during stress. In the case of long-term stress, however, the immune system is down-regulated. As a result, infectious diseases develop more quickly, which in turn can be accompanied by other symptoms such as sore throat, fever or a cold, and swelling of the lymph nodes.