Related Experiment Video For adenoma
Updated: Jul 31, 2025

A Novel Method: Super-selective Adrenal Venous Sampling
Published on: September 15, 2017
Contrast-enhanced ultrasound features of adrenal lesions in dogs
Silvia Burti1, Alessandro Zotti1, Giuseppe Rubini2
1Department of Animal Medicine, Production and Health, University of Padua, Legnaro, Italy.
Background:
The contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) features of adrenal lesions are poorly reported in veterinary literature.
Methods:
Qualitative and quantitative B-mode ultrasound and CEUS features of 186 benign (adenoma) and malignant (adenocarcinoma and pheochromocytoma) adrenal lesions were evaluated.
Results:
Adenocarcinomas (n = 72) and pheochromocytomas (n = 32) had mixed echogenicity with B-mode, and a non-homogeneous aspect with a diffused or peripheral enhancement pattern, hypoperfused areas, intralesional microcirculation and non-homogeneous wash-out with CEUS. Adenomas (n = 82) had mixed echogenicity, isoechogenicity or hypoechogenicity with B-mode, and a homogeneous or non-homogeneous aspect with a diffused enhancement pattern, hypoperfused areas, intralesional microcirculation and homogeneous wash-out with CEUS. With CEUS, a non-homogeneous aspect and the presence of hypoperfused areas and intralesional microcirculation can be used to distinguish between malignant (adenocarcinoma and pheochromocytoma) and benign (adenoma) adrenal lesions.
Limitations:
Lesions were characterised only by means of cytology.
Conclusions:
CEUS examination is a valuable tool for distinction between benign and malignant adrenal lesions and can potentially differentiate pheochromocytomas from adenocarcinomas and adenomas. However, cytology and histology are necessary to obtain the final diagnosis.
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