Scientific publications
Ultrasonography and Atypical Sites of Endometriosis. Scientific Publication
Stefano Guerriero 1 2 , Francesca Conway 1 2 , Maria Angela Pascual 3 , Betlem Graupera 3 , Silvia Ajossa 1 2 , Manuela Neri 1 2 , Eleonora Musa 1 2 , Marcelo Pedrassani 4 , Juan Luis Alcazar 5
Abstract
In the present pictorial we show the ultrasonographic appearances of endometriosis in atypical sites. Scar endometriosis may present as a hypoechoic solid nodule with hyperechoic spots while umbilical endometriosis may appear as solid or partially cystic areas with ill-defined margins.
In the case of endometriosis of the rectus muscle, ultrasonography usually demonstrates a heterogeneous hypoechogenic formation with indistinct edges. Inguinal endometriosis is quite variable in its ultrasonographic presentation showing a completely solid mass or a mixed solid and cystic mass.
The typical ultrasonographic finding associated with perineal endometriosis is the presence of a solid lesion near to the episiotomy scar. Under ultrasonography, appendiceal endometriosis is characterized by a solid lesion in the wall of the small bowel, usually well defined. Superficial hepatic endometriosis is characterized by a small hypoechoic lesion interrupting the hepatic capsula, usually hyperechoic.
Ultrasound endometriosis of the pancreas is characterized by a small hypoechoic lesion while endometriosis of the kidney is characterized by a hyperechoic small nodule. Diaphragmatic endometriosis showed typically small hypoechoic lesions. Only peripheral nerves can be investigated using ultrasound, with a typical solid appearance. In conclusion, ultrasonography seems to have a fundamental role in the majority of endometriosis cases in "atypical" sites, in all the cases where "typical" clinical findings are present.
CITATION Diagnostics (Basel). 2020 May 27;10(6):345. doi: 10.3390/diagnostics10060345