14 yr old has swollen glands on back of neck for over 6 months. what is cause? 14 yr old has swollen glands on back of neck for over 6 months. what is cause? one is really large about midway down back of neck on right side of spine and is approx. 2-3cm in

Those : Those swollen areas are called lymph nodes (often called glands, but they are not glands). They usually get larger in response to inflammation. Nodes on the back of the neck may be due to scalp or other skin problems. If they continue to get larger of do not resolve they should be checked by a doctor. The large one should be checked, especially if it does not respond to antibiotics. Other things that can be done are blood tests to rule out certain rare infections that can cause enlarged nodes that do not respond to normal antibiotics. By far the most common cause of this swelling is inflammation, but if the cause is not found and they remain after antibiotics, biopsy is next.

Probably benign: Enlarged nodes in a 14 year old are probably not serious, but if they are getting larger, they should be investigated. Measure them carefully and repeat in two or three weeks. If they've not changed in six months, they are probably nothing.