[Accessory spleen: echographic images].

In a three-year period, 25 cases of accessory spleen were diagnosed by means of ultrasound. Accessory spleens were demonstrated to be eterotopic nodes of normal splenic tissue, situated usually near the main spleen, to which they may be bound by a pedicle. Their dimensions are usually less than 2 cm. Accessory spleen is usually present in a 10% of normal subjects and represents a TC or US occasional finding. When large, the accessory spleen causes problems about a differential diagnosis with neoplasms of the left upper quadrant. It must not be confused with polysplenia or with splenosis; TC, angiography and scintigraphy may be useful in these cases.