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World J Radiol. Oct 28, 2013; 5(10): 372-380
Published online Oct 28, 2013. doi: 10.4329/wjr.v5.i10.372
Published online Oct 28, 2013. doi: 10.4329/wjr.v5.i10.372
Contrast-enhanced ultrasonography in peripheral lung consolidations: What’s its actual role?
Sergio Sartori, Simona Postorivo, Francesca Di Vece, Francesca Ermili, Paola Tombesi, Section of Interventional Ultrasound, Department of Medicine, St Anna Hospital, I-44100 Ferrara, Italy
Davide Tassinari, Oncology Unit, City Hospital, 47900 Rimini, Italy
Author contributions: Sartori S, Tombesi P, Di Vece F, Postorivo S designed the research; Sartori S, Tombesi P, Postorivo S performed the research; Tassinari D, Ermili F, Di Vece F collected and analysed the data; Postorivo S, Di Vece F, Ermili F wrote the paper; Sartori S, Tombesi P, Tassinari D revised it; Sartori S, Tombesi P, Di Vece F, Postorivo S, Tassinari D, Ermili F approved its final version.
Correspondence to: Sergio Sartori, MD, Section of Interventional Ultrasound, Department of Medicine, St Anna Hospital, Corso Giovecca 203, I-44100 Ferrara, Italy. srs@unife.it
Telephone: +39-532-236551 Fax: +39-532-239613
Received: June 15, 2013
Revised: August 29, 2013
Accepted: September 18, 2013
Published online: October 28, 2013
Revised: August 29, 2013
Accepted: September 18, 2013
Published online: October 28, 2013
Core Tip
Core tip: Contrast-enhanced ultrasonography (CEUS) is widely used to characterize focal liver lesions. The lung has dual blood supply (pulmonary arteries and systemic bronchial arteries), and theoretically it should be suitable for CEUS evaluation of arterial vascularity. This study suggests that a delayed time to arterial enhancement or an arbitrary score based on the overall CEUS behaviour ≥ 7.5 have high sensitivity and specificity in suggesting the neoplastic nature of pleural or peripheral pulmonary lesions. CEUS could allow for discriminating between lesions which need invasive diagnostic procedures, and those which can be monitored with clinical and instrumental follow-up.