Computed tomography of the thyroid bone, before it loops posteriorly and inferiorly to the hyoid bone. Then it continues its descent into the infra-hyoid portion of the neck, anterior to the trachea, thyroid cartilage, and thyroid membrane. Any thyroid residual along the descent course may lead to the development of ectopic thyroid glands. Thyroid carcinomas, thyroiditis, and goiter may develop within any ectopic thyroid tissue. Thyroid scanning with technetium-99 m (Tc99m) plays an important role in detecting orthotopic and ectopic thyroid tissue. Both CT scans and US can help detect ectopic tissue when a lesion demonstrates imaging and enhancement characteristics of thyroid tissue. The absence
Computed tomography of the thyroid neoplastic, or non-neoplastic processes. Neck ultrasound (US), with the prospect of proceeding to fine needle aspiration (FNA), is the first line of investigation; however, other options are available. Thyroid Uptake Scans using Tc-99 m or I-123 are typically reserved for specific clinical scenarios. Cross-sectional imaging including computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) detect incidental thyroid nodules (ITNs) and can be used in the evaluation of thyroid cancers and goiter. The aim of this article is to provide a pictorial review of a broad spectrum of incidental and non-incidental thyroid findings on CT scans. The thyroid gland is a