What is a Calcified Lymph Node?
e?
Calcification of lymph nodes is a mechanism and a reaction to several conditions in the body. For example, the lymph nodes in the chest become calcified. One of the possible reasons why there came a calcification in the chest lymph nodes, or mediastinal lymph nodes for a more technical term, is because of an infection in that same particular area. The response of lymph nodes to infections in the body is called granulomatous response. This is also exactly where the calcification of lymph nodes comes from.
As a lymph node fights, filters and traps foreign and harmful particles, especially those that are cancerous, the lymph node has a tendency to be swollen. The swelling of the lymph node is indeed a sign of infection. When a lymph node swells, it means that the size becomes larger than normal. Once a lymph node enlarges, the size does not resume back to its original size. This is mainly because calcium is being deposited in the lymph node, particularly as a healing mass.
When, for example, a calcified lymph node in the chest is seen on an X-ray, the calcified lymph node appears in a bright white color. A person who develops this kind of lymph node may suffer from diseases like histoplasmosis or tuberculosis. These diseases are characterized by disorders and by viruses or bacteria in the body that lymph nodes fight. These diseases are also powerful that it causes the swelling and calcification of lymph nodes.
The calcified lymph node in itself is not a bad lymph node. It just represents a disorder or an infection that is somewhere near it. A calcified lymph node exists commonly in a malignant area. It can also take place in an area where a past injury occurred. When a calcified lymph node is identified as a malignant one, then surgeons suggest that it be removed through an operation or a biopsy.