[Improvement in the diagnosis of scrotal diseases using color-coded duplex sonography]

Two hundred and twenty-two patients with abnormalities of their scrotal contents were examined with colour-coded duplex sonography. The aim of this prospective study was to evaluate this new procedure for the investigation of the scrotal organs. Differentiation between testicular torsion and inflammation by colour-coded duplex sonography achieved 95% accuracy. The diagnosis of varicoceles was simplified and expedited (accuracy = 99%). In other abnormalities of the scrotum, particularly testicular tumours, a knowledge of the blood flow did not provide any important additional diagnostic information compared with conventional sonography.