Evaluation of superior vena cava syndrome by axial CT and CT phlebography

Transverse axial computed tomography (CT) has been combined with CT digital phlebography to study nine patients with superior vena cava syndrome. Six were due to malignancy, two were secondary to benign disease, and one was a paraneoplastic manifestation. This combined CT approach successfully identified the abnormal morphology of the superior vena cava, demonstrating external compression, encasement, or intraluminal thrombus in all patients and the collateral venous channels in eight. The efficacy and advantages of this technique are discussed. This technique is a rapid, informative, and cost-effective method for the workup of superior vena cava syndrome. The CT digital phlebogram, however, is not successful in regularly and optimally opacifying the normal superior vena cava because of the limited amount of contrast material, dilution effect of the nonopacified incoming flow from the jugular and azygos veins, and the lack of image enhancement from the CT digital scanograms.