HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Submit a response Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Jacobs, M. T. Articles by Donnelly, L. F. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Jacobs, M. T. Articles by Donnelly, L. F.

The Right Place at the Wrong Time: Historical Perspective of the Relation of the Thymus Gland and Pediatric Radiology

¹ Department of Radiology, Division of Pediatric Radiology, Duke University Medical Center, PO Box 3808, Durham, NC 27710.

View larger version (120K): [in a new window]   Figure 1. Illustration of a neonate at autopsy whose demise was attributed to "thymic death." The caption drew attention to the "enormous size of the thymus," which is actually normal in appearance. (Reprinted, with permission, from reference 6.)

View larger version (95K): [in a new window]   Figure 2. Thymic asthma. Sagittal illustration of tracheal narrowing (arrows) due to the enlarged thymus. In this case, tracheal narrowing is exaggerated with neck extension. Th = thymus. (Reprinted, with permission, from reference 6.)

View larger version (106K): [in a new window]   Figure 3. Photograph illustrates the technique of thymic irradiation for either status thymicolymphaticus or thymic asthma. In the caption for the original illustration, note was made that a piece of lead rubber sheeting normally covered the restrained infant, except for a window over the thymus. In this photograph, the sheeting was not present to demonstrate the "relation of the cone to the chest." (Reprinted, with permission, from reference 32.)

View larger version (167K): [in a new window]   Figure 4a. Disappearance of the thymus after irradiation in an 8-week-old infant with "symptoms of thymic enlargement," according to the original caption. (a) Arrows in an initial frontal radiograph point out "atelectasis" of the right lung and accompanying thymic enlargement, an appearance that today is recognized as a normal finding due to the thymus gland. (b) Radiograph obtained 5 weeks after thymic irradiation (dose not given) shows that the thymus is notably smaller; the original noted that the child "is now enjoying perfect health." (Reprinted, with permission, from reference 28.)

View larger version (164K): [in a new window]   Figure 4b. Disappearance of the thymus after irradiation in an 8-week-old infant with "symptoms of thymic enlargement," according to the original caption. (a) Arrows in an initial frontal radiograph point out "atelectasis" of the right lung and accompanying thymic enlargement, an appearance that today is recognized as a normal finding due to the thymus gland. (b) Radiograph obtained 5 weeks after thymic irradiation (dose not given) shows that the thymus is notably smaller; the original noted that the child "is now enjoying perfect health." (Reprinted, with permission, from reference 28.)

View larger version (130K): [in a new window]   Figure 5. Normal variation in thymic appearance from the first edition (in 1945) of Pediatric X-Ray Diagnosis by Caffey. Original arrows demonstrate some of the variations in thymic size and configuration. Before Caffey emphasized this normal variation, thymic appearances on radiographs similar to these were implicated in cases of sudden infant death, particularly from status thymicolymphaticus. (Reprinted, with permission, from reference 36.)