Lymphadenopathy: Meaning in a Radiology Report

Lymphadenopathy

Also written as: enlarged lymph nodes, adenopathy, nodal enlargement

Lymphadenopathy means lymph nodes that are enlarged or abnormal in shape. It is often a reaction to infection or inflammation.

Seen on: CT, MRI, Ultrasound, PET and nuclear medicine

How it reads in a report

There is mild mediastinal lymphadenopathy, with a right paratracheal node measuring 12 mm in short axis.

What it means

Lymph nodes are small, bean-shaped filters spread through the body, mostly in the neck, armpits, chest, abdomen and groin. They swell when they fight an infection or react to inflammation. Radiologists measure a node across its shortest width, the short axis. In most areas, more than about 1 cm counts as enlarged. Its shape and its normal fatty center are checked too.

When it matters

Enlarged nodes are often reactive. That means they are doing their normal job against an infection, and they usually shrink within weeks. Doctors look more closely when nodes are very large or round, lose their fatty center, cluster together, or stay enlarged without a clear cause. Next steps may include a repeat scan after some weeks, blood tests, a PET-CT or a needle biopsy.

Questions to ask your doctor

How large are the nodes in short axis, and where are they?
Do they still have a normal shape and fatty center?
Should they be checked again after any infection has cleared?

General information, not medical advice. What a finding means for you depends on your symptoms, your history and the images themselves, so talk your results through with a doctor.