Lymph Nodes - Swollen

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Call Doctor or Seek Care Now

• Node in the neck causes trouble with breathing, swallowing or drinking
• Fever higher than 104° F (40° C)
• Skin over the node is red
• Node gets much bigger over 6 hours or less
• Fever in baby less than 12 weeks old. Caution: do NOT give your baby any fever medicine before being seen.
• Your child looks or acts very sick
• You think your child needs to be seen, and the problem is urgent

Contact Doctor Within 24 Hours

• 1 or more inches (2.5 cm or more) in size by measurement
• Very tender to the touch
• Age less than 3 months old
• Node limits moving the neck, arm or leg
• Toothache with a swollen node under the jawbone
• Fever lasts more than 3 days
• You think your child needs to be seen, but the problem is not urgent

Contact Doctor During Office Hours

• In the neck and also has a sore throat
• Large nodes at 2 or more parts of the body
• Cause of the swollen node is not clear
• Large node lasts more than 1 month
• You have other questions or concerns

Self Care at Home

• Mildly swollen lymph node

Atención en el hogar

What You Should Know About Normal Nodes:

• If you have found a pea-sized or bean-sized node, this is normal. Normal lymph nodes are smaller than ½ inch or 12 mm.
• Don't look for lymph nodes, because you can always find some. They are easy to find in the neck and groin.

What You Should Know About Swollen Nodes from a Viral Infection:

• Viral throat infections and colds can cause lymph nodes in the neck to get bigger. They may double in size. They may also become tender.
• This reaction is normal. It means the lymph node is fighting the infection and doing a good job.
• Here is some care advice that should help.

Pain Medicine:

• To help with the pain, give an acetaminophen product (such as Tylenol).
• Another choice is an ibuprofen product (such as Advil).
• Use as needed.

Fever Medicine:

• For fevers higher than 102° F (39° C), give an acetaminophen product (such as Tylenol).
• Another choice is an ibuprofen product (such as Advil).
• Note: fevers less than 102° F (39° C) are important for fighting infections.
• For all fevers: keep your child well hydrated. Give lots of cold fluids.

Do Not Squeeze:

• Don't squeeze lymph nodes.
• Reason: this may keep them from shrinking back to normal size.

Return to School:

• Swollen lymph nodes alone cannot be spread to others.
• If the swollen nodes are with a viral illness, your child can return to school. Wait until after the fever is gone. Your child should feel well enough to participate in normal activities.

What to Expect:

• After the infection is gone, the nodes slowly return to normal size.
• This may take 2 to 4 weeks.
• However, they won't ever completely go away.

Call Your Doctor If:

• Node gets 1 inch (2.5 cm) or larger in size
• Big node lasts more than 1 month
• You think your child needs to be seen
• Your child becomes worse

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Imágenes

Lymph Node Swelling of Left Arm Pit

Severe swelling of lymph node(s) in left arm pit. The child had a finger infection and the lymph node(s) in the arm pit became enlarged to help fight this infection.

Source: Self Care Decisions, LLC
Used with Permission from Schmitt Pediatric Guidelines LLC.