title: Diagnostic imaging and therapy in a case of myasthenia gravis associated with thymic hyperplasia.
abstract: The diagnostic approach to a patient with myasthenia gravis to verify the presence of thymic hyperplasia/thymoma is presented. The study of the mediastinal region was necessary. Mediastinal MRI showed the presence of a mass. The differential diagnosis between a mediastinal and an extramediastinal lesion is possible with MRI for its high contrast resolution, good spatial resolution and multiplanarity that allow the detection, localization, evaluation of the extent and/or infiltration of adjacent tissues/organs based on the analysis of adipose cleavages and typing in the different pulse sequences of pathologic tissue with contrast enhancement. Definitive diagnosis of thymic hyperplasia was established. Therefore surgery should be essentially associated with the severity of the clinical presentation rather than with thymic hyperplasia.
authors.affiliation: Istituto di Radiologia, Università Cattolica del S. Cuore, Policlinico A. Gemelli, Roma, Italy.
authors.forename: Raffaella
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Foschi
authors.forename: Pierluigi
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Rinaldi
authors.forename: Agostino
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Meduri
authors.forename: Paolo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Campioni
authors.forename: Tommaso
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Pirronti
mesh_terms: D003952:Diagnostic Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008482:Mediastinum / Q000473:pathology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009157:Myasthenia Gravis / Q000150:complications*; D013952:Thymus Hyperplasia / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis*