[Normal variants and pitfalls at the elbow joint]

The elbow joint is comprised of three different bones with a combined hinge and a ball joint. Several nerves, tendons and muscles cross the joint. Anatomical variations at the elbow are common and may be the cause of certain pathologies. Despite the high quality of modern cross-sectional imaging, certain normal findings on CT or MRI have the risk of being misinterpreted. This article describes more common but also rare, normal variants around the elbow joint. Classic pitfalls are illustrated and compared to similar pathological findings.