{"id":2191,"date":"2015-11-21T18:00:18","date_gmt":"2015-11-21T18:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lbpost.com\/articles\/life\/pets\/the-vet-is-in-lymph-node-exam\/"},"modified":"2015-11-21T18:00:18","modified_gmt":"2015-11-21T18:00:18","slug":"the-vet-is-in-lymph-node-exam","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/hi-lo\/pets\/the-vet-is-in-lymph-node-exam","title":{"rendered":"Lymph Node Exam"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p style=\"margin-right: -0.5in; line-height: 18pt; text-align: left;\" align=\"center\">&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-right: -0.5in; line-height: 18pt;\">The lymph nodes are involved with the immune system and also help drain fluids from the cells. They are found throughout the inside and outside of the body. Those on the outside that can be palpated are called <i>peripheral lymph nodes<\/i>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-right: -0.5in; line-height: 18pt;\">Lymph node disease is common in dogs and cats, so it is important for their health to understand them and also to know where to find them on your pet.<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-right: -0.5in; line-height: 18pt;\">Lymph nodes can enlarge for several reasons. Sometimes, they\u2019re just doing their job\u2014just because they may be enlarged doesn\u2019t necessarily indicate a disease.<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-right: -0.5in; line-height: 18pt;\">Inflammation in an organ near the lymph node causes enlargement of the lymph node. Sometimes, this inflammation is part of the body\u2019s normal reaction to a toxin, bacteria or a foreign body, and if it\u2019s just a normal reaction, it will resolve on its own. Sometimes, the initiating cause of the lymph node persists, and the lymph node stays enlarged.<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-right: -0.5in; line-height: 18pt;\">Infection in any part of the body near a lymph node will cause it to enlarge as it is doing its job. Sometimes, the body takes care of the infection and the lymph node enlargement resolves on its own. Sometimes, antibiotics are needed.<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-right: -0.5in; line-height: 18pt;\">A dreaded cause of lymph node enlargement is cancer. This tends to be much more common in older pets. The most common one we see in animals is lymphoma, sometimes called <i>lymphosarcoma<\/i>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-right: -0.5in; line-height: 18pt;\">If a persistent enlargement of a lymph node exists and no cause can be found\u2014for example, a foxtail embedded in the skin near the lymph node\u2014then a sample of the lymph node needs to be examined. This can be done with a small needle (called <i>fine-needle aspirate<\/i>) without any anesthesia because it is only a pinprick.<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-right: -0.5in; line-height: 18pt;\">The small size of the needle means a small sample size for the pathologist to examine microscopically. Sometimes, a piece of the lymph node, or the complete lymph node, needs to be submitted for analysis.<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-right: -0.5in; line-height: 18pt;\">Our <a href=\"http:\/\/www.lbah.com\/word\/lymph-node-diseases\/\">lymph node page<\/a>&nbsp;has much more information. You can also go to our <a href=\"http:\/\/www.lbah.com\/word\/weekly-health-exam\/\">Learning Center<\/a>&nbsp;and learn how to palpate them at home.<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-right: -0.5in; line-height: 18pt;\"><strong><i>These photos show the sequence of a lymph node examination. The peripheral lymph nodes can be palpated, and a good vet will teach you how if you bring your pet in for an exam. They are small and can take practice to find. If you don\u2019t feel them, that\u2019s good because they may not be enlarged.<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-right: -0.5in; line-height: 18pt;\"><strong><i><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" size-full wp-image-45247\" src=\"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/LN-Exam-3.jpg\" alt=\"LN Exam-3\" width=\"620\" height=\"854\" \/><\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-right: -0.5in; line-height: 18pt;\"><i>The first ones to check are the <\/i>submandibular <i>(below the lower jaw).<\/i><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-right: -0.5in; line-height: 18pt;\"><strong><i><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" size-full wp-image-45248\" src=\"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/LN-Exam-4.jpg\" alt=\"LN Exam-4\" width=\"620\" height=\"918\" \/><\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-right: -0.5in; line-height: 18pt;\"><i>Next are the <\/i>prescapular <i>(near the shoulder blades).<\/i><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-right: -0.5in; line-height: 18pt;\"><strong><i><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" size-full wp-image-45249\" src=\"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/LN-Exam.jpg\" alt=\"LN Exam\" width=\"620\" height=\"461\" \/><\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-right: -0.5in; line-height: 18pt;\"><i>The third set to palpitate are the <\/i>axillary<i> (near the armpit).<\/i><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-right: -0.5in; line-height: 18pt;\"><strong><i><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" size-full wp-image-45250\" src=\"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/LN-Exam-2.jpg\" alt=\"LN Exam-2\" width=\"620\" height=\"586\" \/><\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-right: -0.5in; line-height: 18pt;\"><i>Finally\u2014the <\/i>popliteal <i>(the back part of the leg by the knee joint).&nbsp;<\/i><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-right: -0.5in; line-height: 18pt;\"><i>All photos courtesy of LBAH.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p style=\"margin-right: -0.5in; line-height: 18pt; text-align: left;\" align=\"center\">The lymph nodes are involved with the immune system and also help drain fluids from the cells. They are found throughout the inside and outside of the body. Those on the outside that can be palpated are called&nbsp;<i style=\"line-height: 24px;\">peripheral lymph nodes<\/i>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":133,"featured_media":67552,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","inline_featured_image":false,"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":"","_EventAllDay":false,"_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":false,"_EventShowMapLink":false,"_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":[],"_EventVenueID":[],"_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":false,"_VenueShowMapLink":false,"_":"","_author_alias":"","cap-aim":"","cap-description":"","cap-display_name":"","cap-first_name":"","cap-jabber":"","cap-last_name":"","cap-linked_account":"","cap-newspack_employer":"","cap-newspack_job_title":"","cap-newspack_phone_number":"","cap-newspack_role":"","cap-user_email":"","cap-user_login":"","cap-website":"","cap-yahooim":"","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_email_html":"","newspack_email_type":"","newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_hide_page_title":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_show_share_buttons":"","newspack_sponsor_byline_prefix":"","newspack_sponsor_disclaimer_override":"","newspack_sponsor_flag_override":"","newspack_sponsor_only_direct":"","newspack_sponsor_url":"","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_show_updated_date":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[388],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-2191","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pets","tag-the-vet-is-in","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2191","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/133"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2191"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2191\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/67552"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2191"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2191"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2191"},{"taxonomy":"newspack_spnsrs_tax","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/newspack_spnsrs_tax?post=2191"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=2191"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}