Posterior occipital lymph nodes in children

In fact, most normal people have many lymph nodes in their bodies. When people touch the lymph nodes, they will feel a foreign body sensation. At the same time, for normal people, touching their lymph nodes will not feel pain, but if the lymph nodes are diseased, pain will occur when touching the lymph nodes. Many parents have discovered that their children have lymph nodes behind their ears. So is it normal for children to have lymph nodes behind their ears?

Parents often feel movable "lumps" the size of mung beans or soybeans behind their children's ears, in front of their necks or on their jaws. So what are these bumps? How to tell whether they are normal or not? In fact, these are lymph nodes. At this time, you should pay attention to your baby's swollen lymph nodes behind the ears.

Children do not feel pain when these bumps are touched and generally do not need to be treated. This is a normal superficial lymph node in the human body. The lymph nodes contain many cells that specialize in engulfing pathogenic substances. They can engulf and digest bacteria, viruses, and aging and dead cells in the body, playing a protective and defensive function. If the swollen lymph nodes are found to be larger than soybeans, either singly or in clusters, and the child cries or screams in pain when touched, parents should pay attention. Because it is one of the symptoms of many diseases in children, common diseases are divided into the following three categories:

1. Chronic local inflammation

Oral tonsillitis, tooth decay, periodontitis, seborrheic dermatitis, otitis media, etc. can all cause enlargement of the submandibular, occipital, and behind-the-ear lymph nodes.

2. Tuberculous inflammation

After being infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis, children may also experience swollen and painful lymph nodes in the neck, behind the ears, and under the jaw, accompanied by low fever, night sweats, and weight loss.

3. Infectious diseases and systemic infections

For example, in cases of measles, chickenpox, infectious mononucleosis, chronic systemic infection and leukemia, swollen lymph nodes can be felt in superficial parts of the body.

What kind of lymph nodes should be watched out for?

▪ Lymph nodes adhere to each other, like beads on a string;

▪ Accompanied by long-term irregular fever, sweating, weight loss, lack of energy and other symptoms;

▪ Lymph nodes are larger than soybean size, hard in texture, and have poor mobility;

▪ The lymph nodes rapidly enlarge in a short period of time (1-2 weeks) and become painful.