Contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) of the abdominal vasculature

Abstract

Vascular diseases account for a significant proportion of abdominal pathology and represent a common referral source for abdominal ultrasonographic examinations. B-mode, color Doppler, and spectral Doppler analyses are well-established in the evaluation of abdominal blood vessels although they may occasionally be limited by lower sensitivity for slow flow visualization or the deeper location of abdominal vascular structures. The introduction of microbubbles as ultrasonographic contrast agents has rendered contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS), a valuable complementary ultrasonographic technique, which is capable of addressing clinically significant problems and guiding patient management. The purpose of this pictorial review is to analyze the use of CEUS in the evaluation of abdominal vascular pathology and illustrate such applications by presenting representative images. Pathology discussed includes abdominal aortic aneurysm, post-endovascular treatment aorta, portal vein thrombosis, abdominal vascular trauma, and organ transplantation along with its complications.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s00261-017-1329-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Contrast‐enhanced ultrasonography of intraluminal inferior vena cava leiomyosarcoma: A case report

“…CEUS advantage over conventional ultrasonography is its ability to examine the microvasculature, and recent studies have shown its higher sensitivity in the differential diagnosis of malignant vs benign portal vein thrombosis. Enhancement of thrombus during the arterial phase suggests malignant neovascularization …”

“…CT and MRI images have been reported, but ultrasonographic features are less well known, especially with contrast‐enhanced ultrasonography (CEUS). CEUS is a simple, fast, and safe imaging technique, which is useful to assess the nature of endoluminal lesions . Here, we report CEUS findings in a case of primary IVC leiomyosarcoma.…”

Diagnostic value and clinical significance of ultrasound combined with CT in cystic renal cell carcinoma

“…At the same time, CT can effectively show the blood supply of the nidus in patients. Therefore, the combination of the two methods can significantly improve the diagnostic accuracy of cystic renal cell carcinoma and help patients to receive timely treatment in order to reduce the damage caused by cystic renal cell carcinoma (26,27). Katabathina et al (28) considered that the diagnosis of malignancy degree of renal cystic lesion is particularly important.…”

General principles and overview of vascular contrast-enhanced ultrasonography

“…CEUS can diagnose endoleaks with higher accuracy than CTA and can be used to re-categorize previously diagnosed type V endoleaks (Figs. 8,9) [27,[64][65][66][67][68][69]. Detection of endoleaks with CEUS is typically performed through a qualitative assessment of enhancement, although quantitative analysis with TIC has also been considered, with promising results [27,28].…”