Written by: Liupuwai | Editor-in-charge: Ke Xin | Image: Huang Zai
Hello, hello everyone, I'm six outside the universal.
Two days ago, I found this reader's message in the tree hole of the "Eleventh Consultation Room":
▲Image source: Reader's message
Seeing this, have you already begun to unconsciously touch your lymph nodes?
In fact, many friends are the same as the above reader, often in the armpits, groin, neck, etc. to touch their lymph nodes, sometimes there will be a little pain, if there is inflammation around it, there can be an explanation of the reason, if you touch the lymph nodes for no reason, then the heart is often afraid:
Is there something wrong with the body? Did you get lymphoma? Is there leukemia... After making up a bunch of things in my brain, I scared myself enough.
Lymphadenopathy is common, and anxiety follows, but as long as we understand the lymphatic system, we will dispel many of the concerns about this.
What is the lymphatic system
As shown in the figure below, the entire lymphatic system is very large, and friends with a little medical knowledge may see that the lymphatic system and our cardiovascular system are very similar, and indeed, the two systems are concomitant, independent of each other but closely related.
▲Image source: Google
The lymphatic system consists of three parts:
Lymphatic ducts (capillary lymphatic vessels - lymphatic vessels - lymphatic stem - lymphatic ducts)
Among them, capillary lymphatic vessels, like capillaries, are distributed in various organs throughout the body and exchange substances with tissues. Lymph fluid then flows gradually into the lymphatic vessels - lymphatic stem - lymphatic ducts, and finally into the veins. The vast majority of these lymphatic ducts are accompanied by the corresponding blood vessels.
Lymphatic organs
Including lymph nodes, spleen, thymus, tonsils, in addition to lymph nodes, the other three immune organs with age, the role will gradually weaken, of which the thymus gland will slowly shrink with age.
Lymphoid tissue
A reticular structure that contains a large number of lymphocytes.
▲ Image source: Giphy
Lymphatic fluid is a transparent, colorless fluid formed by the convergence of capillary lymphatic vessels absorbing the fluid of the tissue. Except for some non-vascular structures (such as epithelium, cornea, lens, cartilage, etc.) as well as the brain, spinal cord, spleen marrow, bone marrow, etc., capillary lymphatic vessels are spread throughout the body.
The histomatic fluid that enters the lymphatic capillaries accounts for about 10% of the fluid filtered from the capillary artery end. The difference in pressure between the interstitial fluid and the lymphatic capillary fluid prompts the fluid of the tissue to enter the lymphatic capillaries.
Therefore, any factor that can increase the pressure of tissue fluid can accelerate lymphatic fluid production, such as increased capillary lymphatic vessel pressure, decreased plasma colloidal osmolality, increased protein concentration in tissue fluid, increased lymphatic permeability, etc.
In the lymphatic circulation, lymphocytes, antibodies, etc. produced by lymph organs also enter the lymphatic fluid. These fluids follow the lymphatic vessels of the first level and eventually flow into the veins.
Because the lymph is colorless and transparent, so it is actually difficult to see the lymphatic vessels during the operation, unlike the blood vessels, the small blood vessels can be broken and the red blood can be seen immediately, and it is good to be ligated, but the small lymphatic vessels are broken and cannot be seen at all, so there are often various lymphatic leaks.
Function of the lymphatic system
The role of the lymphatic system is mainly in the following aspects:
First, like capillaries, they are all over the body, like some macromolecular proteins that are not easily absorbed by the capillary network, which can be absorbed through the capillary lymphatic vessels and eventually flow back into the bloodstream.
Second, the lymphatic system is an important defense function system in the human body, when there is local inflammation, the lymphatic system can quickly block the external bacteria and antigenic foreign bodies, etc., and the immune cells inside play a role in removing bacteria and foreign bodies, filtering through the lymph nodes layer by layer, not allowing it to enter the deep part of the human body.
Third, it can play a role in buffering blood volume. Lymphatic vessels and veins are communicative, when the blood volume is too large, the lymphatic vessels can play a role in shunting, so the lymphatic system is a system with a multi-functional defense effect, which is quite important to the human body and cannot be missing.
▲ Image source: Giphy
Lymphadenopathy has several causes
Lymph nodes are relay stations of local lymph fluid, which have the effect of intercepting and removing foreign bodies such as bacteria and toxins, and become a defensive barrier to prevent the spread and spread of lesions.
When lesions or inflammation occur in the local area, foreign bodies such as bacteria and toxins can be drained with lymph fluid through the lymphatic vessels to the corresponding lymph nodes nearby, at this time, a large number of lymphocytes in the lymph nodes accumulate and proliferate, the function is vigorous, and the volume increases, so local lymphadenopathy will occur.
Let's talk about the causes of lymphadenopathy:
infect
This is the most common cause of lymphadenopathy, when we have bacterial infection or local foreign body stimulation, it is easy to cause lymphadenopathy in the corresponding area, which is a large number of lymphocytes in the lymph nodes to accumulate and proliferate, the function is exuberant, the volume is increased, and the ability of the lymph nodes to deal with bacteria and other foreign bodies can be enhanced.
tumor
Many malignant tumors of the blood system, such as lymphoma and various types of acute and chronic leukemia, can cause lymphadenopathy, most commonly cervical lymphadenopathy, most of which are accompanied by systemic lymphadenopathy.
On the other hand, like solid tumors, such as lung cancer, stomach cancer, liver cancer, breast cancer, nasopharyngeal cancer, etc., their cancer cells can spread to regional lymph nodes, and lymph node metastasis can also lead to lymphadenopathy.
There is also a situation, many tumor patients often see lymphadenopathy on the report when doing CT or MR, and have been very worried about cancer metastasis, in fact, most of them are inflammatory or reactive hyperplasia, and a small part is the lymphadenopathy caused by metastasis.
Autoimmune diseases
Many autoimmune diseases, such as serum-like reactions, allergic sub-sepsis, and systemic lupus erythematosus rheumatism, can also cause lymphadenopathy.
▲ Image source: Giphy
Common sites of lymphadenopathy
Normally, lymph nodes are difficult to reach, but when superficial lymph nodes are enlarged, they can still be touched, and some may even be painful.
The presence of enlarged lymph nodes in the corresponding area indicates that there is a problem in the local area. We commonly have the following parts:
armpits
Most of the swollen lymph nodes in the armpits are problematic in the upper limbs, mammary glands, chest wall, etc.
groin
Inguinal lymphadenopathy may be a problem in the lower extremities and perineum.
Submandibular
If you feel a swollen lymph node under the jaw, there may be a problem at the bottom of the mouth, the buccal mucosa, the gums, etc.
neck
The lymph nodes in the neck are enlarged, and there may be problems in the nose, pharynx, larynx, trachea, thyroid, etc.
collarbone
Supraclavicular lymph nodes are enlarged, which may be problematic in the esophagus, stomach, trachea, pleura, lungs, etc.
Body
If there are multiple lymph nodes in the whole body, it is still necessary to be vigilant about lymphoma or leukemia, and it is best to go to the hospital for examination and examination in time.
There are still many cases that are inexplicably swollen, you may feel that there is nothing wrong with your body, but you find that there are lymphadenopathy, this situation does not have to worry too much, most of the time it will slowly get better.
If there are still no good signs for more than half a month, or if you find more and more swelling, or multiple lymph nodes in the whole body, it is still recommended to go to the hospital for examination and examination to see if there is any related disease.
▲ Image source: Giphy
Can lymph drain and lose weight?
Lymphatic drainage, lymphatic slimming and other projects are the standing projects of many health care centers, and there must be many markets that can make so many famous people.
Its routine is nothing more than to fool you when you go to consumption, saying that you have toxins in your body, and toxins are excreted through lymph, if your lymphatic congestion, toxins will accumulate, causing harm to the body.
But as we said earlier, the biggest function of the lymphatic system is the immune barrier, which can clear microorganisms when there is infection. In addition, there is also a role in bringing the protein molecules in the tissue fluid back into the bloodstream, flowing into the veins, and eventually pooling into the blood circulation, which can produce about 2 to 4 liters of lymph per day.
So, I didn't quite understand what these so-called detoxifications were.
Under normal circumstances, this system can run steadily on its own, and many harmful substances can indeed be reabsorbed through the lymphatic system and then transported to the liver and kidneys to metabolize and clear, but this is a routine work, massage can not play any role, and if there is an infection and other situations, blindly carry out "lymphatic drainage", it is possible to destroy the capillary lymphatic network, resulting in the spread of infection, more than worth the loss.
Of course, if you think this kind of project can bring you relaxation, whether it is psychological or physical, then it is not impossible to go once in a while, after all, it is better to spend money to buy happiness.
Can the necks of poultry be eaten?
Seeing the above content, some friends may have a question: since the lymphatic system clears bacteria, and there are so many lymph nodes on the neck side, can the neck of the bird eat it? Will it be unclean?
In fact, these problems are more worrying, if it is not a sick bird, there is no bacteria in its lymphatic system, and after cooking, negligible microorganisms have also been wiped out.
Practice out of the truth, a certain flavor of duck neck, a black duck and other duck goods stores swept the streets, so many people have not heard of eating duck neck poisoning ah (the ingredients are not fresh another said).
Well, at the end of the article, throw you a question: Do you know why everyone eats duck neck and rarely eats chicken neck?
That's because the flavor of chicken neck is not as good as duck neck, especially the brine, and the meat of chicken neck is too small, which is troublesome to nibble, so I choose duck neck with beer!
Well, today's content is here, if it helps you, remember to like and follow Oh ~
I love the world!