Swollen glands on 4yo

[rachie]

My 4yo ds has swollen glands on the sides of his neck - there are like little balls! It's totally freaking me out here. I hesitate to go to the regular pediatrician because they'll probably just say it's allergies and give him anti-histamines or something. We see a chiropractor regularly (going tomorrow actually).

My midwife said that it could indeed be allergies but it could also be something more serious. Her adult son just had labs run because of that and his liver and kidney functions are lower than they should be.

So now I'm worried it could be ANYTHING. I don't know what type of tests SHOULD be run on him - I don't just want to treat the symptom - I want to know what is CAUSING it. If I do take him to the pediatrician - is there anything specific I should REQUEST to have him tested for?

[Marnica]

How long have they been swollen?

If it just started, I would not do anything or go to the doc. Swollen glands can be an immune reaction. Perhaps he was exposed to a virus and his body is fighting it off. I would not immediately assume the worst here. I would be giving copius amount of SA and vitamin A and D and I'd give it a week or so, monitoring if he starts complaining of any other symtoms.

If a ped visit is in your future, they will probably just run a CBC to see if there is evidence of recent or current infection and go from there.

[Amanda L]

To me, swollen glands means the body is doing what it is supposed to and I wouldn't rush him into treatment with that as the only symptom. But that being said - if your gut tells you something is off, then take him in! I agree with the previous poster who suggested a CBC. You can always refuse the antihistamines or whatever and still have the peace of mind that everything else has been checked out.

[rachie]

?

What's SA? What's CBC? Just curious.

His glands have been swollen for weeks, possibly longer. My husband said he noticed it weeks and weeks ago. I was like, "Why didn't you tell me?" He figured the same - that maybe ds was just swollen from a recent infection, allergy flair-up, etc... But now that a couple MORE weeks have gone by and they are just as swollen as before.... ???

I'm going to mention it this morning at the chiropractor but this may be something the ped would have to run tests on - ??

[Marnica]

SA is sodium ascorbate. A highly bioavalibale buffered form of vitamin c

A CBC is a complete blood count. I would go see the ped if it has been weeks and weeks. A CBC is a good place to start.

[rachie]

Update:

Okay - this was posted months ago and I just checked ds again and he STILL has like a little "ball" - on his neck - swollen glands I think. I will for sure get the CBC done soon and I might see if I can get him to see a homeopathic pediatrician if possible.

I just don't think it's a healthy sign if it's going on this long!