Diagnostic Efficacy Of High-frequency Ultrasound Combined With CEUS For Cervical Lymphadenopathy

Objective: To investigate the diagnostic efficacy of high-frequency ultrasound combined with contrast-enhanced ultrasonography(CEUS)for benign and malignant cervical lymph node lesions in order to provide a better imaging basis for treatment planning and prognosis of cervical lymph node lesions.Methods: The study used a retrospective analysis of the ultrasound images and clinicopathological data of 68 patients with enlarged cervical lymph nodes who presented to our hospital with puncture or surgical pathological findings between December 2020 and December 2022.Based on the pathological findings,the lymph nodes were divided into benign groups(reactive hyperplastic lymph nodes,tuberculous lymph nodes)and malignant groups(metastatic lymph nodes,lymphoma).We focused on the CEUS perfusion pattern and time-intensity curve(TIC)characteristics of the two groups and investigated the efficacy of high-frequency ultrasound combined with CEUS in the diagnosis of benign and malignant lesions in cervical lymph nodes.Results: Among the 68 patients with enlarged lymph nodes,41(60.30%)were in the benign group and 27(39.70%)were in the malignant group.The results of the study showed that there were statistically significant differences in the longitudinal to transverse ratio(L/S),corticomedullary boundary,lymphatic gate echo and blood flow distribution of the lymph nodes in the malignant group compared with the benign group.(The differences in perfusion pattern,uniformity of perfusion,intensity of perfusion,speed of contrast perfusion,speed of contrast fading,time to peak,and peak intensity of lymph nodes in the malignant group were statistically significant compared with the benign group(P < 0.05);the best efficacy of high frequency ultrasound combined with CEUS in diagnosing malignant lymph nodes in this study,with an AUC of0.841,sensitivity of 0.925,differences are statistically significant(P < 0.05).Conclusion:High frequency ultrasound combined with CEUS improves the diagnostic accuracy of cervical lymphadenopathy.