INDEX:
- What is adenopathy?
- Prognosis of the disease
- What are the symptoms?
- Diagnostic tests
- Causes of adenopathy
- Can it be prevented?
- Treatment of the disease
- What expert treats adenopathy?
What is adenopathy?
Adenopathy, also known as lymphadenopathy, is a disease in the lymph nodes. However, this term is usually used as a synonym for an inflammation or enlargement of the lymph nodes.
Lymph nodes and lymph nodes are structures of the lymphatic system that play a key role in fighting infections in the body. Their function is to filter, trapping viruses, bacteria and other infection generators before they affect other parts of the body.
An adenopathy indicates a hypertrophy in the lymph nodes. There are several types:
- Localized adenopathy: depending on its location.
- Generalized adenopathy: an example could be the flu, since it is a generalized infection throughout the body.
- Persistent generalized adenopathy: it is present in the body for a long time, although without apparent cause.
Depending on the area in which it is located, a distinction can be made between different types of lymphadenopathy: lingual, cervical, axillary, mediastinal… In patients under 30 years of age, the appearance of lymphadenopathy is due to benign causes in 70% of cases.
Prognosis of lymphadenopathy
Adenopathy is caused by a wide variety of diseases and/or medications. When a person is diagnosed with adenopathy, there is often a fear that it will lead to a malignant process. This is possible, although statistically it is more common for their origin to be bacterial or viral, and they usually resolve on their own or with antimicrobial treatment.
This is the case of localized supraclavicular adenopathies, which in 90% of cases over 40 years of age are malignant. When the affected area is on the right it is associated with mediastinal cancer, lung cancer or esophageal cancer. In the case of Virchow’s node, we are talking about a node associated with metastasis of a gastrointestinal primary. It is also common in renal, prostate, testicular or ovarian tumors.
In the case of lymphadenopathy located in the jaw or jugular vein, it usually indicates the presence of a malignant head and/or neck tumor or lymphoma.
Symptoms of lymphadenopathy
The lymphatic system is primarily a network of lymph nodes, blood vessels and organs located throughout the body. It should be noted that many of the lymph nodes are located in the head and neck, so they are usually the most affected areas, although it is also worth mentioning the armpits and groin.
An inflammation of the lymph nodes indicates that something is not working properly in the body. Some symptoms that the affected person may feel are the following:
- Tenderness and pain in the nodes
- Swollen and enlarged lymph nodes.
- Sore throat, fever, cold, runny nose and other signs of a respiratory tract infection.
- General swelling of the glands throughout the body. This could indicate the presence of an infection, such as mononucleosis or HIV, or an immune disorder such as rheumatoid arthritis or lupus.
- Fever
- Night sweats
- Nodes that are hard and fixed in place. Rapidly growing and may indicate a tumor
- Skin tenderness at the lymph node site
Medical tests for lymphadenopathy
When diagnosing lymphadenopathy, it is necessary to carry out an anamnesis, the name given to the set of data obtained and collected from a patient’s medical history in order to make a specific diagnosis.
In the anamnesis the following points are taken into account:
- Age
- Sex
- Personal history: contact with animals, sexual relations, recent surgeries, drug addiction, diet…
- Family history
- Clinical context
- Chronology
In turn, a physical examination should be carried out in which all regions where ganglions are present are explored.
Other tests that can be performed to try to diagnose adenopathy are:
- Hemograms
- Imaging tests including: CT scans, ultrasounds, MRI scans and scintigraphy.
- Lymph node biopsy
- Blood tests
What are the causes of adenopathy?
The most common cause of swollen lymph nodes is an infection, usually a viral infection, such as the common cold.
Other frequent causes of lymph nodes due to infections are:
- Strep throat
- Ear infection
- Measles
- Mononucleosis
- Skin infections
- HIV
Other diseases or pathologies, such as tuberculosis, sexually transmitted infections such as syphilis, toxoplasmosis or cat scratch fever, occur less frequently.
At other times, it is disorders of the immune system that cause diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis or lupus.
Cancer is also a cause of lymphadenopathy, especially lymphoma, leukemia and cancers that spread and metastasize to the lymph nodes.
Can lymphadenopathy be prevented?
There is no specific way to prevent lymphadenopathy.
However, there are a number of home remedies to alleviate the discomfort or pain of swollen lymph nodes:
- Apply warm compresses
- Rest
- Over-the-counter pain relievers
Treatments for adenopathy
There is no specific treatment for this problem. Treatment is started once the cause of the problem is identified.
Unless the cause of the infection is known to be bacterial, antibiotics should not be given, although this is common practice. Corticosteroids should not be administered either, as they may hinder the diagnosis of hematological type diseases or activate an underlying infection. It is worth mentioning that treatment for lymph nodes depends on the cause. In case the cause is an infection, the treatment will be antibiotics.
In the case of immune disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis or lupus, treatment is directed at the aforementioned condition.
In the event that the lymph nodes have been inflamed by cancer, the treatment will be dedicated to treating the latter, which may require the use of surgery, radiotherapy or chemotherapy.
Which specialist treats lymphadenopathy?
The approach to lymphadenopathy is multidisciplinary, as there are several specialists who can deal with this problem.
Among them are the specialist in Internal Medicine and the specialist in General Surgery, although the Endocrinologist and other specialists can also participate in its diagnosis and/or treatment.