[Ultrasonic diagnosis of acute cholecystitis. Critical study of 50 verified cases]

A retrospective study of fifty surgically proven cases of acute cholecystitis and a review of the literature enabled the authors to summarise the sonographic features of the disease. These may include one or several of the following signs: thick gall bladder wall with an occasional posterior hypoechogenic rim, diffuse echogenicity of the purulent bile and local tenderness at the passage of the transducer. If an abscess is present, there is a hypoechogenic area in contact with the gall bladder. The technical problems of the B scan performed on an emergency basis make the use of real time intercostal scans invaluable. Ultrasound should be the first and may be the radiological examination performed in this situation.