title: Differential diagnosis of adnexal masses with transvaginal sonography, color flow imaging, and serum CA 125 assay in pre- and postmenopausal women.
abstract: The aim of the present study was to compare the diagnostic accuracy of transvaginal sonography, color flow imaging, and serum CA 125 assay in pre- and postmenopausal women undergoing laparotomy for a clinical diagnosis of an adnexal mass. In 109 consecutive women, the morphology of the mass was evaluated with transvaginal sonography, the pulsatility index (PI) was computed on the arteries detected with color flow imaging, and blood samples were obtained for CA125 assay. Descriptive statistics were performed for the whole series and according to the menopausal status. The diagnostic accuracy of transvaginal sonography was significantly higher in premenopause than in postmenopause (97 versus 85%, P<0.05). In premenopause, the three tests showed a similar diagnostic accuracy (85, 82, and 79%, respectively). In conclusion, the addition of further tests besides transvaginal sonography is not warranted in premenopausal women with an adnexal mass, but they seem to be useful in postmenopause.
authors.affiliation: Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, University of Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: F A
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Strigini
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gadducci
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Del Bravo
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ferdeghini
authors.forename: A R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Genazzani
mesh_terms: D000291:Adnexal Diseases / Q000097:blood / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000601:surgery; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D018394:CA-125 Antigen / Q000097:blood*; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D005833:Genital Neoplasms, Female / Q000097:blood / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D007813:Laparotomy; D008875:Middle Aged; D017698:Postmenopause; D017697:Premenopause; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D018615:Ultrasonography, Doppler, Color / Q000379:methods; D014621:Vagina
chemical_list: D018394:CA-125 Antigen