Therapy | Inflammation of the lymph nodes – How dangerous is that?

Therapy

The therapy of an inflammation of the lymph nodes depends crucially on the triggering cause. For example, lymph node swelling can occur for only a few days in the context of a cold or flu, and no specific therapy is required. If the lymph nodes are inflamed due to a bacterial infection, such as lymphgranuloma venerum (lymphgranuloma inguinale), antibiotic therapy is absolutely necessary. Drug therapy may also be necessary for lymphadenitis in the context of viral diseases such as Pfeiffer’s glandular fever, measles or rubella. However, this is aimed less at the lymph nodes or the elimination of the pathogens, but is used to reduce fever.

Prognosis

The prognosis of lymph node inflammation depends largely on the cause of the inflammation. For example, inflammation and the associated swelling of the lymph nodes usually subside within a few days or weeks after a common infection. Lymphadenitides in the context of bacterial and viral inflammation also usually subside within a few weeks.

However, this can also depend to a large extent on whether timely therapy has been carried out (for example, in the case of lymphgranuloma venerum). However, there are also chronic lymph node swellings in infectious diseases, an example being tuberculosis with infestation of the lymph nodes. Here, the swelling persists for years and decades as an expression of chronic inflammation.