Alcohol-induced pain of lymph node near left hip

[ShineALight25]

Hi,

First of all, for reference, I've found this thread very helpful and relevant to my situation: http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Leukemia--Lymphoma-/Swollen-Lymph-Nodes-after-alcohol-consumption/show/385680

I'm a 25 year-old white male, soon to be 26. My concern is that for a year or so, whenever I drink too much (which I tend to, when I do drink), I'll experience not severe but certainly very noticeable pain in what I think to be a lymph node near my left hip. I am not a medical student or professional so this is based just on my own understanding of my anatomy. Usually the pain persists for three or four days, and then I feel "normal" again. My own personal history with alcohol is that from 19-24 or so I was drinking too much too often, like many college-aged people do, and in the past year I've throttled it down quite a bit, splurging occasionally only to pay for it the following few days.

Like others in the thread I linked, I was very worried to see that most results for those search terms mentioned Hodgkin's or other forms of lymphoma, which are more serious conditions than I had considered before.

To add to my concern, I've recently lost weight, though I don't believe it's linked to the weight loss associated with lymphoma, as I've been dieting and exercising regularly for at least six months, and results have come at a reasonable and not worrying pace. But as a result of this weight loss, I've achieved low body fat (probably in the 10% area), and near my hip I believe I can see the lymph that hurts. However, I can't accurately say if this is unusual, because I'm never been at this weight before, so it may or may not be swollen (or something worse), or just newly visible. I can also make out something similar on the other side, though it's smaller and rarely if ever hurts.

Beyond that, I don't generally exhibit any traits associated with lymphoma, other than occasional night sweats, which have been an infrequent occurrence as long as I can remember and still are infrequent, though they do happen. Other symptoms like fever, itchiness, swelling, lack of appetite or energy, other swollen nodes, chest pain, etc., don't really apply to me. And really this pain only occurs after a night of heavy drinking, usually 12-24 hours later.

Ideally this is something I'd take up with my family physician, but I am currently without health coverage and barely make it by as it is, and the costs of undergoing any kind of procedures related to diagnosing this would represent a very significant monetary investment to me, so I'm reluctant to seek help. That being said, nothing is more important to me than my health, even money, and so if it's necessary to seek treatment, I am willing to incur whatever financial costs necessary to ensure my safety.

In light of all of that, I'd very much appreciate any opinions or insight from people more knowledgeable on the matter than myself. Thanks for reading and for you help.

I've included a picture of what I believe to be the node (though for all I know it could be healthy, or a muscle, or anything, really). Thanks again!

[ShineALight25]

I hadn't considered the possibility of a hernia because truthfully it's not a condition I'm overly familiar with. Considering there is some lingering pain and a still-present bump, after researching it I wouldn't rule it out as a possibility. It's also not something I like the sound of, so maybe I am better off getting it looked at by a professional sooner rather than later.

Is there anything I could be doing in the immediate future to identify or treat it before I'm able to make it in for an appointment, hopefully sometime next week? I tried not to got too absorbed in online literature on the topic because knowing myself, I know I'm likely to just start worrying even more. Is it a very serious condition, that I should be worried about it between now and however soon I'm able to get into my doctor's office? Thanks again for all your feedback and help.

[Ken_PA]

I just had a thought: is it maybe some type of hernia, from the exercise?

[ShineALight25]

No, as far as I've been able to tell it is not very movable at all, and it does seem to be activated when doing leg raises and other exercises that use muscles in that group. Because of this I tend to think you were correct in your estimation that it's something along the lines of a soft tissue/torn muscle type of injury.

The pain did linger on and off (mostly on) for upwards of a week but since then I've felt mostly normal.

[Ken_PA]

Glad to have been of some help. I take it that the bump is not movable.

[ShineALight25]

Thanks a lot for your insight! It's lent me a lot of peace of mind since you posted, and it does make sense.

If it isn't obvious I have a tendency toward being a bit of a health worrier, so it means a lot. I'll probably still talk to my family physician as soon as I finish getting my health coverage straightened out. In the meantime, I'll definitely be able to rest a little easier.

[Ken_PA]

Hi, that seems too high to be a 'superficial inguinal lymph node'. See wikipedia for a diagram.

I'd guess offhand that it's a soft tissue injury, seeing as how it is bilateral (lymphoma wouldn't behave like that) especially if you'd been doing a lot of ab work and/or side bends. Might be a torn muscle or maybe the aponeurosis that's around there.

Alcohol has a vasodilation effect, so maybe that's what causes the pain - as also happens to some in the alcohol/node-pain thread.

You should be able to determine if it's a muscle by observing if it gets activated during various movements, say like leg raises.

But if the bump is very movable, then that's something different.