enlarged lymph nodes

[loopylou6]

does anyones dc have enlarged neck lymph neck nodes that come and go, but are there more than not IYSWIM? my ds suffers with these and has done for 4 years now, they recentll went down so much that they where nearly invisable, but he got a nasty cold and now they are back, can someone reassure me please?

I have a friend whose dd has this - as you say - up and down, think it is fairly common.

As long as they get big with an illness like a cold, and then get smaller, or disappear after, that is very normal.
You should worry if you get a lymph node which lasts longer than 6 weeks and if it is getting bigger and bigger.
Your DS's LNs sound very normal.

thanks binkle do they stay up for alot of the time?

thanks darrell, he has had them for 4 years now, they do stay up longer than 6 weeks, sometimes 6 months or more, but i have deffo seen them shrink quite small, but like is ay he has had a nasty cold and they are huge again now

I couldnt really say how long, but when they are up they are very prominent. As Darrell says, if they stay prominent for say six/eight weeks it is as well to have them checked and you can develop benign mastoids on the lymph glands - I have had one myself and they are best removed early whilst little - mine was misdiagnosed for two years and was quite a size by the time it was removed.

BUT, the likelihood of it being that is rare I would think.

If they were worrying type of nodes they wouldn't shrink back down again, but it sounds like you need a little more reassurence.
Book an appointment to see your GP to get them checked out. It's the sort of thing they are used to seeing.

Message withdrawn

thanks for the info binkle, darrel, once again thanks for that, i did take him the doc when it first kicked off, they measured the largest node and gave antibiotics to see if it shrunk which it did slightly, then it was trips to and from the docs for a while to try different AB'S and monitor it, in the end the doc spoke to his peadiatrician friend at the hospital and apparently he wasnt concerned, i changed docs and she ummed and arred as to wether she should refer him to an ENT which she did in the end, the ENT was more concerned with his ear wax and nothing more was ever mentioned about it. Lisalisa your poor dd, maybe she has a virus, that would add up with the feeling drained etc etc, please let me know how she went on

Darrell - my DC has had these since born (4 years ago).

I have asked various GP's and no-one seems worried. It has never changed in size but if he turns head to the side they stick out loads! They are really tiny (smaller than a pea) and one in same place on each side.

Think I should go and ask again?

Really healthy child in general!

My ds (now nearly 6) has a very prominent enlarged gland on his neck for over a year, (gp had checked it and said not to worry (but I did!)asked a head/neck consultant (on an unrelated hearing matter)if it was cause to worry, he checked and said it was likely they wouldn't go back down after such a while as they can scar, lumps do look bigger in the neck as when they're young there isn't a large amount of fat to cover them and when he's older you wouldn't notice it

HTH

My DS Has got simliar lumps on either side of his neck - one is more prominent than the other - he is now 5 and I think we noticed them when he was just 2 - Our GP told us not to worry. Although I haven't asked him about them for a couple of years now. do you think I should refer him back to the Doc's? Sorry to hijack

wow this seems more common than i ever imagined, josben, totallytrue, your descriptions sound exactly the same as my ds.

I have one of these, had mumps and then menigitis when I was about 7, was very ill for quite a while and after the illness mum noticed that one gland was still swollen. It has never gone done and is still noticeable now, 30 years on, it does become worse when I am under the weather but even when I am fighting fit it is still there and you can see it. Mum took me to the GP when i was youger and they werent bothered and I went to the GP a couple of years ago and they said it was nothing to worry about, I could get it removed but the operation would leave a horrible scar.

thanks jenkil, sorry u had such an awful time

I saw various Dr's when we first noticed them and I kept being asked to go back after 6 weeks or so to see if they had reduced in size. It got to a point where the Doctor was going to do some blood tests - but the senior Doctor at the practice stepped in said it was not necessary and as DS2 was generally very healthy so just to leave it.

It does worry me though when I catch sight of them.

Now i'm thinking about making another Drs appt..!

yes it is horrible when u catch sight of them isnt it, when i took dd to the doc a few weeks ago with tonsilitus i asked the doc (who just happens to be a peadiatrician aswell as a GP) about it, and she didnt seem to concerned...

Josben your DC's sounds exactly the same as mine.

I have asked so many docs, HV's over the years and all say it is okay.

Must stop worrying, must stop worrying....

my ds has them on either side of the back of his neck, and a big one at the front - ya know the one that swells when u have tonsilitus? i was wondering if it had anything to do with a broken tooth he has on the same side as the big one, its a back tooth and he broke it on a polo just before the nodes came up, we did go the dentist to try and get it taken out but he had the needles then jumped out the chair when the dentist tried pulling the tooth out, hmmm wonder if it could be connected?