Contrast-enhanced Ultrasound In Differential Diagnosis Of Small Hepatocellular Carcinoma And Splastic Nodules In Cirrhotic Liver:a Study

Objective: To investigate the perfusion features of small hepatocellularcarcinoma (HCC) and dysplastic nodules (DN) in cirrhotic livers for evaluationof contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) in differential diagnosis of small HCCand DN.Mtheods:42small HCCs and21DNs in cirrhotic livers were examined byusing the microbubble contrast agent SonoVue under a low mechanical indexCEUS before surgery. The enhanced level of all the nodules in different timephases were observed and the contrast enhancement patters were comparedbetween small HCC and DN.Results: Both the enhanced level in different time phases and contrastenhancement patters of small HCC and DN presented statistical significance (allP＜0.05). Small HCC primarily presented hyper-enhancment while DNprimarily presented hypo-enhancment in arterial phase; The main contrast enhancement patters in small HCC primarily were hyper-enhancment in arterialphase, hypo-enhancment in portal phase and delay phase while complex diversein DN.Conclusion：Small HCC and DN in cirrhotic livers display differentperfusion features on CEUS, CEUS is helpful for differential diagnosis in smallHCC and DN;However, the contrast enhancement patters of DN are complexdiverse,there is a certain degree of overlap between DN and small HCCespecially with well-differentiated and early HCC. Part of the lesions in thepractical work, the differential diagnosis is still more difficult.