Clinical and Radiologic Review of the Normal and Abnormal Thymus: Pearls and Pitfalls

At imaging, the thymus appears in a variety of shapes and sizes, even in the same individual. It gradually involutes with age and may acutely shrink during periods of bodily stress. During the recovery period, it grows back to its original size or even larger, a phenomenon known as thymic rebound hyperplasia. These anatomic variations and dynamic changes appear to be the main source of confusion with pathologic conditions. In turn, these...