[Benign mesenchymal tumors of the abdomen]

Benign mesenchymal tumors of the abdomen are-except for hemangiomas-rare neoplasms that are associated with potentially life-threatening complications. Thus, awareness of the most important entities and knowledge of their imaging characteristics is fundamental for the radiologist.

An overview of the most frequent benign abdominal soft tissue tumors and their common imaging features is given. Furthermore, other facts concerning the individual entities that are relevant to radiologic practice are outlined.

A literature search and evaluation of the institutional image database were performed.

Hemangiomas, desmoid tumors, lipomas and lipoma variants are presented. Typical characteristics and radiological signs (e. g., iris diaphragm sign, band sign, India ink artifact) are elucidated and illustrated by image examples.

Despite the lack of distinctive imaging features, there are a few radiological characteristics suggestive for each of the entities that in many cases allow for correct diagnosis. In cases of doubt, biopsy or surgery is necessary to distinguish them from malignancies.