[Echographic assessment of the hand: normal anatomy and pathologic patterns]

Area of Science:

• Musculoskeletal Imaging
• Diagnostic Ultrasound
• Hand Surgery

Background:

• Hand anatomy presents challenges for imaging due to complex structures.
• Color Doppler Ultrasonography (US) provides crucial data on soft tissues and vessels.
• High-frequency small-parts probes (7.5-20 MHz) are essential for hand ultrasonography.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of ultrasonography in various hand pathologies.
• To assess the utility of US in identifying abnormalities in tendons, muscles, joints, and nerves.
• To determine the sensitivity and specificity of US for surgical hand conditions.

Main Methods:

• A retrospective analysis of 465 patients and 20 healthy volunteers.
• Utilized high-frequency small-parts probes (7.5-20 MHz) with a silicon pad for probe adhesion.
• Color Doppler US was employed to visualize soft tissues and vascular structures.

Main Results:

• US identified various tendon pathologies including tenosynovitis, cysts, and ruptures.
• Muscle findings included ruptures and rare tumors; joint disorders like ganglia and rheumatism were observed.
• Carpal tunnel syndrome was accurately diagnosed, showing tenovaginalitis and median nerve compression. US demonstrated 100% sensitivity in surgical patients.

Conclusions:

• Ultrasonography is highly accurate for diagnosing a wide range of hand conditions.
• US offers excellent sensitivity for surgical hand patients, with specific diagnostic ranges for tendons, muscles, nerves, and joints.
• The technique is valuable for evaluating soft tissue, vascular, and nerve abnormalities in the hand.