The size of the thymus: an important immunological diagnostic tool?
The report on the influence of seasonal factors on thymic size in early life describes a pattern of ultrasonographically measured thymic growth in Gambian infants including the finding of a smaller thymus in the hungry season. These factors raise a number of important questions: Is the size of the thymus relevant to its function and could measurement of the thymus be a useful immunological diagnostic tool in the investigation of thymic function in humans with a depressed immune system?


CONCLUSIONS
Studies using the size of the thymus as an immunological diagnostic tool should be encouraged.
Department of Paediatrics, Hvidovre Hospital, University of Copenhagen, Denmark. d.jeppesen@dadlnet.dk
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Jeppesen
D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D012621:Seasons; D013950:Thymus Gland / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000276:immunology* / Q000502:physiology