title: Sonographically guided core-needle biopsy of focal splenic lesions: report of four cases.
abstract: There are few published reports about the use of splenic needle biopsies in the investigation of focal splenic lesions. We report our experience with sonographically guided core-needle biopsies of splenic lesions in 4 patients. The biopsies resulted in the following diagnoses: sarcoidosis, malignant lymphoma, infarction, and scar tissue. Surgery was avoided in the 3 patients diagnosed with sarcoidosis, infarction, and scar tissue by ruling out the possibility of a malignant splenic tumor. None of the patients experienced significant complications. We conclude that splenic core-needle biopsy is a useful and safe diagnostic tool for the evaluation of focal splenic lesions.
authors.affiliation: Third Department of Internal Medicine, Yokohama City University School of Medicine, 3-9 Fukuura, Kanazawa-ku, Yokohama 236-0004, Japan.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Morita
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Numata
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tanaka
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Mitsui
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Matsumoto
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kitamura
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Saito
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kiba
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sekihara
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001707:Biopsy, Needle / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013158:Splenic Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology*; D018615:Ultrasonography, Doppler, Color / Q000379:methods*