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Ectopic thymus is a condition where thymus tissue is found in an abnormal location . It usually does not cause symptoms, but may leads to a mass in the neck that may compress the trachea and the esophagus. It is thought to be the result of either a failure of descent or a failure of involution of normal thymus tissue.
The two lobes differ slightly in size, with the left lobe usually higher than the right. Thymic tissue may be found scattered on or around the gland, and occasionally within the thyroid. [2] The thymus in children stretches variably upwards, at times to as high as the thyroid gland. [2]
Thymic hyperplasia can be divided into three groups namely, those without any pre-existing medical condition, those recovering from a pre-existing medical condition such as pneumonia, corticosteroid therapy, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, surgery, and burns, and those with other disorders such as hyperthyroidism, juvenile myasthenia gravis, [5] sarcoidosis, pure red cell aplasia.
The thymus gland cells form part of the body's immune system. In those with myasthenia gravis, the thymus gland is large and abnormal. It sometimes contains clusters of immune cells that indicate lymphoid hyperplasia, and the thymus gland may give wrong instructions to immune cells.
Thymic involution is the shrinking of the thymus with age, resulting in changes in the architecture of the thymus and a decrease in tissue mass. [1] Thymus involution is one of the major characteristics of vertebrate immunology, and occurs in almost all vertebrates, from birds, teleosts, amphibians to reptiles, though the thymi of a few species of sharks are known not to involute.
A thymoma is a tumor originating from the epithelial cells of the thymus that is considered a rare neoplasm. [1] Thymomas are frequently associated with neuromuscular disorders such as myasthenia gravis; [2] thymoma is found in 20% of patients with myasthenia gravis. [3]
Congenital athymia's clinical symptoms are directly related to the thymus's absence and its incapacity to generate T cells with the necessary immune capabilities. An increased vulnerability to bacterial, viral, and fungal infections results from T-cell immunodeficiency.
Thymic hypoplasia is a condition where the thymus is underdeveloped or involuted. Causes