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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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What Causes Painful Swollen Lymph Node On Left Side Of The Neck?

I was tested for HIV about a month ago and tested negative. I have a painful swollen lymph node on the left side of my neck and no cold symptoms so I am worried. Could I have a swollen lymph node before signs of a cold and it is just fighting that infection or should I be concerned about HIV?
Mon, 20 Jun 2016
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Dentist,  's  Response
Hello,

I can understand your concern. A painful lymph node indicates a sign of infection. If the lymph node was painless and swollen, it would have raised concern. thus, the chances are more that you are having an infection in the head and neck area only. You should consult an ENT specialist to examine you for any throat infection. If you are not having throat or cold related symptom, you can go to a dentist and ask him/her to look for foci of some infection in the oral cavity as chronic infections of oral cavity are many times painless and present with enlarged lymph node.

In addition, as you have been tested negative for HIV once, to confirm the absence of HIV infection, you should get tested again after 3 months of the possible exposure as some patients develop late antibodies (as late as 84 days after exposure) and they show positive at 3 months' test.

I hope this information helps you. Thank you for choosing HealthcareMagic. Take care.

Best,
Dr. Viraj Shah
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What Causes Painful Swollen Lymph Node On Left Side Of The Neck?

Hello, I can understand your concern. A painful lymph node indicates a sign of infection. If the lymph node was painless and swollen, it would have raised concern. thus, the chances are more that you are having an infection in the head and neck area only. You should consult an ENT specialist to examine you for any throat infection. If you are not having throat or cold related symptom, you can go to a dentist and ask him/her to look for foci of some infection in the oral cavity as chronic infections of oral cavity are many times painless and present with enlarged lymph node. In addition, as you have been tested negative for HIV once, to confirm the absence of HIV infection, you should get tested again after 3 months of the possible exposure as some patients develop late antibodies (as late as 84 days after exposure) and they show positive at 3 months test. I hope this information helps you. Thank you for choosing HealthcareMagic. Take care. Best, Dr. Viraj Shah