Radiographic evaluation of the incidental adrenal lesion

The detection of incidental adrenal masses has increased substantially with the advent and widespread use of high-resolution cross-sectional imaging techniques such as CT and MRI. The work-up and treatment of these incidentally found adrenal masses continue to be a clinical challenge for radiologists, endocrinologists, and adrenal surgeons. The approach to the evaluation of most of these adrenal masses depends on the radiologic appearance of the lesion, and whether the patient has a known underlying malignancy. The aim of this article is to review imaging features of pathologic abnormalities of the adrenal gland. Recent advances in noninvasive imaging methods that attempt to differentiate benign from malignant lesions also are addressed.