Terrible pain with swollen lymph node behind ear

IzzysfureverMom

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Thanks😀 I went to the urgent care. And then I went to my regular doctor the next day. After the first two days, the pain got a little better, but I had to take off of work. Then I’ve been taking Tylenol and the past couple of days the swelling has reduced and I will be getting further imaging. I’m going to an ENT this week and I had a lot of blood work done. Unfortunately the phlebotomist damaged my vein so now I have to get that looked at too.

I still have no idea what caused this, but I don’t think it’s anything in my mouth, but hopefully the ENT will be able to figure it out. I’m having some pressure pain and itching in that ear too again.

unfortunately, the tech that did the ultrasound did not measure the lump at all or anything that she was supposed to do, like compare to the other side etc. But I suppose they can still look at the images. And maybe have some idea what caused this- I may never know. Hopefully I will be able to get the CT or the MRI and make sure it’s not cancer. I’m assuming because the swelling is going down that it’s probably not cancer though. However, I read there is a part of the main parotid gland that is hard to visualize unless you do an MRI.

I have been on amoxiclav for almost a week now which is the recommended antibiotic for parotitis. If it is caused by Lyme disease or toxoplasmosis, I would need a different antibiotic. I’ve got blood work pending for a lot of different things.
I am hoping for the best with your ENT appointment this week💜💜
 
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Meowmee

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Update is ent is doing a ct scan without and with contrast.

Unfortunately I have to take my dexcom off but can just unplug the pump temporarily for it. So I will try to restart this sensor because it ends two days before the test. I remember having a ct scan in er when I had covid and no one told me to remove it. It was ok. But with my pump I am much more careful now because even x-rays can damage it and the nasty xray tech would not let me put my pump in her area, made me put it on the table when I got a chest x-ray etc. at the clinic.. then about 1-2 weeks later my pump software failed and fortunately they just sent me a brand new pump, because I did not want to reset it as people said they had total pump failures after a reset.

Anyway, he said there is still some swelling although it is not visible anymore and I can still feel it. I still have some pain and the awful feeling that I ate something sour even when I did not eat. He said it is from all the inflammation etc. I can't remember why he thought ct is better first now, maybe to see if there is a stone. He said he can't feel one but sometimes you could have one anyway. He examined my ears and mouth as well. He also thought it was a virus, maybe even mumps but tests are not always accurate for it.

My blood work was ok except for low wbc and low lymphocytes. Test for ebv shows a reactivation. I am sure the other doc said to test for Sjorgen's but they didn't, always remember to take a pic of the rx before the test is done. No lyme disease etc, no toxoplasmosis. I know though I had ehrlechia chaffeensis at some point because one of my tests a few years ago was positive, however now it is negative. Weird.

My arm still hurts from the blood draw damage and I had terrible bruising down the vein too. I have not had time to get someone to look at it yet. He said them looking at the lump during the us at the end is what they normally do, and they can't measure that gland well. It still seems odd to me though.

I will find out soon I hope what is going on and hopefully it is nothing serious. My teeth hurt on that side too and it still hurts to chew. I am trying to eat softer food. He said to keep using hot compresses.
 
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denice

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I know a common cause of a low wbc is a virus. I remember when my daughter was small, she was really sick with something, and they did blood work. Her count was very low and the doctor said that was a strong indication of a virus.
 
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Meowmee

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I know a common cause of a low wbc is a virus. I remember when my daughter was small, she was really sick with something, and they did blood work. Her count was very low and the doctor said that was a strong indication of a virus.
Thanks 😁 It could be that, mine was not really low though, just by .1 but lower on lymphocytes... but I have had chronically low wbc usually but not super low, and then all of a sudden it went back to normal for a long time. Maybe it is the ebv. When I had covid my neutrophils were low I think, or high and one doc said that was a sign of it. Usually if it is low they say virus, but high bacteria etc. but it can vary with different viruses I think.
 
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Meowmee

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Yesterday I had my ct scan and it went ok. They did the iv in my hand due to the vein damage etc. I got the results already but they sent it to the wrong doc as they had the doc who ordered the us listed and not the ent. So today I had to call them and make sure to send it to ent even though I told them yesterday before the scan that it was the wrong doctor etc. lol

My regular doc nurse called and I missed the call but after several calls and being hung up on I got through to her. I forgot though to tell her on the blood work that they had not tested me for sjorgens.

Anyway the scan, which scanned several areas, I was amazed how much- like my whole head area, chest and upper body and brain, said everything looks normal, however they said due to dental work they could not visualize the parotid gland on the affected side well. But it looks like no tumor there.

I don't know what to do at this point, I am still having pain and symptoms but not as bad as when it first happened. So it seems it is some type of parotid inflammation but still no obvious cause. I hope it won't become chronic. I did notice my mouth is more dry when I sleep, but that can happen from my blood sugar too. I have been drinking lots of water etc. since the contrast which they said to do for two days.

I need to research if an mri will be able to visualize the gland better even with the dental amalgam. About 10 years ago or more, a metal filing caused a crack in my back teeth and my dentist then put a bridge in after removing the filling. Had I known they would cause my teeth to crack I would have done it years ago. But he used natural materials not metal etc. obviously. I did not know that could cause issues viewing things on scans. I wonder if a regular xray is better at the dentist. however a ct scan is similar in some ways.

I guess I need to travel to go to a salivary gland specialist probably. It still hurts when I eat and I have that I ate something sour feeling a lot of the time. Now the pain is worse so it can still get worse at times too, but not as bad as the one night, but chewing makes it worse overall. The swelling is a lot less almost gone but still a bit I can feel mildly.
 
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Meowmee

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My new update is the ENT called. I didn’t get to talk to him because I was out. He said that it looks OK. I’m going to call back and just mention to him that I don’t I have dental amalgam but now I found out whatever was used may be radio opaque…and I’m wondering if I should do the MRI still.

I am still having some pain. I’m wondering if it’s just residual from whatever caused this- he said he thought it was a virus probably and come back if it flares up etc.

I posted on a dental reddit forum asking about the amalgam issue, and a moderator deleted my post after people answered it because they said it had misleading information, which it did not.
I should’ve known better than to post anything on Reddit because that place is a cesspool of abuse and idiocy. I have to find a valid dental forum or radiological forum.

I did get some information though from the replies that my filling could’ve been redone with zirconia, which is made out of zirconium and is radio opaque. It’s a bit confusing because zirconia is considered to be ceramic, but it’s a mixture made out of zirconium which is a metal and which is white.
Anyway, it is not temperature sensitive so it won’t expand and contract the way other metals do and it is less likely to cause cracks in your natural teeth.

My dentist sadly passed away two years or so before the pandemic so I can’t ask, but I may be able to contact the dentist that took over his practice to ask if they know what he used for the filling and the bridge. I went there for a while still after he passed away, so they still have my records as far as I know.

Also, the new dentist I went to may be be able to tell me if there’s a better way to look at it.

I feel like my teeth feel overly sensitive now. I’m not sure if it’s from whatever happened in the parotid gland. I have always had sensitivity because years ago they used to tell you to over brush your teeth and it wore away the edge of my gums.

At one point another Dentist put something on the my teeth that were the most sensitive near where the root is to cover it up, but that wore away. He said he couldn’t believe I was living with this for so long due to how sensitive they were.

I used to use the sensitivity toothpaste, but recently I switched to baking soda arm and hammer because that cleans your teeth / plaque much better and the sensitivity got better. I stopped using mouth rinses too because they have ingredients that make sensitivity worse.

Recently I purchased the Arm & Hammer with the sensitivity ingredient, which I think just came out, I’m trying that now.

I hope I can get some of my vaccines now. I’m thinking of doing it next week or the week after. I always dread that because I get a reaction where I get sick for two or three weeks with aches and pains. I try to schedule it for when I don’t have to work and it gives me time to rest and recover.
 
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Meowmee

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I forgot to mention, but the past few days my smell and taste has been affected too. I can still smell things, but not completely a lot of time and I can’t taste things the same way. I was eating some pineapple last night and I thought it was affecting my taste at first, but then it happened a few hours later with something else that should’ve smelled strong and could barely smell it.

Also my other food tasted bad to me like it was going off, I had someone else taste it and it tasted fine to them.

I wonder if it could have something to do with what happened to my parotid gland if it was a virus etc. I know that’s a symptom of Covid and so is swelling of the parotid gland. Although the first time I had Covid, I didn’t have any effect on my taste or smell or swelling.

I’m going to call ENT to find out.
 
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