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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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Suggest Treatment For Enlarged Occipital Node On The Head

My 16 yr old son just noticed an enlarged occipital node at the back of his head 3 days ago...it has grown in size from approx. 1cm x 1cm to 2cm x 1.5cm over the past 3 days. It is non tender and moveable per Pediatrician. He has had cold sxs and sore throat and most importantly headaches for 3 weeks, strep is neg. Tylenol and Ibuprofen do not make a difference. No sinus infection sxs, no ear infection per MD today, afebrile, no drainage either. What do you think? The headaches concern me the most. Please advise. Thank you very much!!
Thu, 17 Mar 2016
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General & Family Physician,  's  Response
HI, thanks for using healthcare magic

It is understandable to be concerned about headaches but most are due to benign causes.
The most common causes of headaches are migraines, tension headaches, sinus headaches.

With a history of cold symptoms for the same three weeks, these are likely linked (since can cause headaches) but if you are concerned you can speak to his doctor about imaging such as CT.

The cold symptoms would also likely be the cause of the enlarged node. Lymph nodes respond to inflammation/infection in their specific area.

It can be monitored. If it grows or it is otherwise alarming a complete blood count may be done looking mainly at the white cell count.

I hope this helps
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Suggest Treatment For Enlarged Occipital Node On The Head

HI, thanks for using healthcare magic It is understandable to be concerned about headaches but most are due to benign causes. The most common causes of headaches are migraines, tension headaches, sinus headaches. With a history of cold symptoms for the same three weeks, these are likely linked (since can cause headaches) but if you are concerned you can speak to his doctor about imaging such as CT. The cold symptoms would also likely be the cause of the enlarged node. Lymph nodes respond to inflammation/infection in their specific area. It can be monitored. If it grows or it is otherwise alarming a complete blood count may be done looking mainly at the white cell count. I hope this helps