Painful Lump Behind Her Right Ear. History Of Migraine And Have Root Canal Treatments. What Is This?

Posted on Wed, 11 Sep 2013

Question: Hi, My wife, based in Mumbai, India has a little painful lump behind her right ear and the pain extends to her jaw line and on the behind the ear. It is painful at night and harder than the usual lymph node swelling - but still soft to feel. It is painful for her to sleep on one side. It pains when touched.
She is 38, diabetic, history of migraine and has a few root canal treatments done on her upper and lower teeth. She is also under tremendous stress last few years. Could they all be related? The swelling had appeared a couple of years ago but disappeared soon. This time, it has been very painful and the pain seems to be increasing by the day. Dental issues are ruled out as we did all tests including OPG. Please suggest if an ENT view is necessary or if this is a sign of something more critical

Answered by Dr. Hari Charan Perigela (1 hour later)

Brief Answer:
It could be infection

Detailed Answer:
Hi
The swelling can be enlarged lymphnode behind the ear.It is enlarged due to infection of the drainage area like oral cavity,scalp.
Tooth infection can be a cause.
What ever is the reason,she should take broad spectrum antibiotic tablet along with anti inflammatory drug.
Her blood sugar should be normal.
It is not critical.
It will come down with medicines
Wish her speedy recovery
Regards

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Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar