Cervical ectopic thymus in an infant

Prasad TRS, Chui CH, Ong CL, Meenakshi A
Correspondence: Dr Sai Prasad TR, trsai@rediffmail.com

ABSTRACT
Cervical ectopic thymus, a common embryological anomaly detected incidentally at autopsy, is rarely described in clinical patients. About 100 cases have been described in the literature, ten percent of which occurred in neonates. We report a case of solid cervical ectopic thymus in a three-month-old male infant presenting as a neck lump and snoring at sleep. The embryopathogenesis, clinical features, diagnostic modalities and management options are discussed, together with a review of the literature.

Keywords: aberrant thymus, ectopic thymus, heterotopic thymus, infant, neck mass
Singapore Med J 2006; 47(1): 68-70