[Sonographic diagnosis of the gastrointestinal tract]

Ultrasound examination is an established screening procedure for illdefined abdominal complaints and is complementary to the abdominal plain film. The bull's eye phenomenon due to bowel wall thickening is the characteristic feature of bowel pathology. Ultrasound is the method of proof for hypertrophic pyloric stenosis, imperforate anus or ascites. Findings of edematous (intussusception), inflammatory (Crohn disease) and neoplastic stomach or bowel disease require confirmation by radiology or endoscopy. Ultrasound of the gastrointestinal tract allows the selection of further diagnostic procedures and thus accelerates the diagnostic work-up.