title: Ultrasound findings of ganglions of the wrist.
abstract: Fifty-one patients with a palpable swelling of a wrist or finger of suspected ganglion origin were examined by ultrasound (US). Forty-five were operated on, and a ganglion was found in 35. The ganglions took the form of cysts 0.4-4 cm in diameter (mean 1.4 cm) with a projection into the joint or tendon in 19 cases. Two patients had multiple ganglia, and two a wrist lipoma, one echo-rich and the other echo-poor with a thick wall. One patient had a giant cell tumour of the tendon sheath which was moderately echogenic in appearance, one had carpal tunnel syndrome and a ganglion-like finding at US, one had tenosynovitis and negative US and one had a prominent tendon due to postoperative sequelae, with US showing a longish echo-poor lesion. Two had hypertrophied muscle forming a long echo-poor structure, one had an exostosis and one had no abnormality in the wrist at operation. Our experiences suggest that ultrasound is useful in many cases with impression of a ganglion at palpation showing multiplicity of a lesion or for assisting in differential diagnosis, although a physical examination is mostly sufficient for diagnostic purposes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Diagnostic Radiology, University of Oulu, Finland.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Päivänsalo
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Jalovaara
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007592:Joint Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D008067:Lipoma / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013581:Synovial Cyst / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D014463:Ultrasonography; D014953:Wrist / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*