A. A GANGLION CYST is not an uncommon finding in children. The most common site by far is the wrist, often near the radiocarpal joint (the joint between the radius bone of the arm- the one on the outside of your arm if your palm is facing the ceiling- and one of the wrist bones.)
Essentially, the problem is with the capsule lining the joint space. (Every joint in the body has a self-containing capsule to keep joint-fluid in and everything else out). In a ganglion cyst, there is a defect in the joint capsule. With everyday use of the wrist, the fluid from the joint space (synovial fluid) becomes pushed into the soft-tissue around the area. It shouldn't be there, so the body tries to react against it and keep it contained. Our body reacts by forming fibrous tissue (kind of like scar tissue) around the fluid, walling it off. This is the ganglion you feel. It's actually a synovial-fluid cyst.
In kids that haven't yet finished growing, the problem is usually not too bad, and tends to go away on its own as time goes by. Sometimes the cysts can get quite large and can interfere with the function of the tendons in the region or cause some pain. In these cases, the doctor will try to remove some of the fluid through a needle to relieve the problem. In tough cases where nothing seems to work, the cyst can be removed surgically and the tract of fluid leading from the joint to the cyst can be removed and closed at the same time. This will cure the problem.
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