DE Saumyen, Mandal Sandip K, Das Rashmita, Maitra Debabrata, Saha Sreetama, Shahin K S Rishana, Ghosh Debangshi, Dey Anwesha
Paediatrics, College of Medicine & Sagore Dutta Hospital, Kolkata, IND.
Radiodiagnosis, College of Medicine & Sagore Dutta Hospital, Kolkata, IND.
Cureus. 2024 Aug 16;16(8):e67036. doi: 10.7759/cureus.67036. eCollection 2024 Aug.
The thymus is essential for the maturation of T-lymphocytes, crucial for adaptive immunity. In neonates, thymic development is influenced by factors such as gestational age, birth weight, birth length, etc. Ultrasonography offers a non-invasive method to assess thymic size and morphology. However, there is limited research on thymic ultrasonography among neonates in Eastern India. This study aimed to investigate the ultra-sonographic characteristics of the thymus in neonates admitted to a Special Neonatal Care Unit (SNCU) in Eastern India and its correlation with certain clinical and anthropometric variables.
Conducted from May to July 2024, this cross-sectional observational study involved 80 neonates admitted to the SNCU at the College of Medicine & Sagore Dutta Hospital. Thymic ultrasonography, using an Esaote MylabX7 ultrasound machine with a 3-11 MHz linear probe (Esaote, Genoa, Italy), measured thymic length, width, anteroposterior (AP) dimension, sagittal area, and thymic index. Clinical data, including gestational age, birth weight, birth length, and antibiotics received, were collected from medical records. Pearson's correlation coefficient and linear regression analysis were used to examine correlations and predictors of thymic dimensions.
The cohort consisted of 45 boys (56%) and 35 girls (44%). The average birth weight was 2,626 grams for boys and 2,639 grams for girls. The median gestation period was 38 weeks for both groups. Thymic measurements did not significantly differ by gender. Correlation analysis revealed significant relationships between thymic dimensions and neonatal anthropometric measurements. Birth weight showed a strong positive correlation with thymic length (r = 0.486) and width (r = 0.233). Linear regression identified birth weight as a significant predictor of the thymic index (p < 0.001), explaining 21.2% of the variance.
This study provides insights into the factors associated with thymic size in neonates, highlighting the critical role of birth weight in thymic development. Future research should explore additional variables influencing thymic size and consider larger sample sizes to enhance model explanatory power and its potential role in immunity.
胸腺对于T淋巴细胞的成熟至关重要，而T淋巴细胞对适应性免疫起着关键作用。在新生儿中，胸腺发育受胎龄、出生体重、出生身长等因素影响。超声检查提供了一种评估胸腺大小和形态的非侵入性方法。然而，在印度东部的新生儿中，关于胸腺超声检查的研究有限。本研究旨在调查入住印度东部一家特殊新生儿护理病房（SNCU）的新生儿胸腺的超声特征及其与某些临床和人体测量学变量的相关性。
本横断面观察性研究于2024年5月至7月进行，纳入了医学院附属萨戈尔·杜塔医院SNCU的80名新生儿。使用配备3-11 MHz线性探头的百胜MylabX7超声诊断仪（百胜，热那亚，意大利）进行胸腺超声检查，测量胸腺长度、宽度、前后径、矢状面面积和胸腺指数。从病历中收集临床数据，包括胎龄、出生体重、出生身长和接受的抗生素使用情况。采用Pearson相关系数和线性回归分析来检验胸腺大小的相关性和预测因素。
该队列包括45名男孩（56%）和35名女孩（44%）。男孩的平均出生体重为2626克，女孩为2639克。两组的中位妊娠期均为38周。胸腺测量值在性别上无显著差异。相关性分析显示胸腺大小与新生儿人体测量值之间存在显著关系。出生体重与胸腺长度（r = 0.486）和宽度（r = 0.233）呈强正相关。线性回归分析确定出生体重是胸腺指数的显著预测因素（p < 0.001），可解释21.2%的方差。
本研究深入探讨了与新生儿胸腺大小相关的因素，突出了出生体重在胸腺发育中的关键作用。未来的研究应探索影响胸腺大小的其他变量，并考虑更大的样本量，以增强模型的解释力及其在免疫方面的潜在作用。
