title: [Heart involvement in thymic neoformations: the role of magnetic resonance tomography. Experience in 3 cases].
abstract: Three paracardiac masses (1 thymic cyst, 2 thymomas) were studied by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) using spin-echo, multi-echo, and gradient-echo sequences (cine-MR). MRI showed: a pedunculate cystic lesion, typical for thymic origin, in Case 1; cardiac and pulmonary infiltration, and 3 intracardiac metastases, in Case 2; cardiovascular compression but not infiltration, in Case 3. In 3/3 cases MRI was superior to transthoracic echocardiography (TTE), and in 2/2 MRI was superior to computed tomography (CT), not performed in Case 2 (allergy to contrast agents). MRI may be considered the most important technique to evaluate cardiovascular involvement by thymic neoplasms. MRI should be performed after TTE and makes CT unnecessary.
authors.affiliation: Cattedra di Cardiologia, Università degli Studi, Genova.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Molinari
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Sardanelli
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ottonello
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Maragliano
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Passerone
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Costa
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Caponnetto
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D004452:Echocardiography; D006338:Heart Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology / Q000556:secondary; D006352:Heart Ventricles; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008476:Mediastinal Cyst / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000601:surgery; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness; D009362:Neoplasm Metastasis; D013945:Thymoma / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D013953:Thymus Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed
vernacular_title: Interessamento cardiaco da neoformazioni timiche: il ruolo della tomografia a risonanza magnetica. Esperienza su 3 casi.