[3D-ultrasound: a valuable adjunct for therapy planning and follow-up of head and neck tumours].
OBJECTIVE
The three-dimensional visualization of orofacial tumours and adjacent organs at risk of infiltration is an important requirement for staging, therapy planning and follow-up. Artifacts from the mandible or metal implants often reduce the diagnostic power of computed tomography (CT). The value of 3D-ultrasound (3D-US) in respect to the standard methods CT and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was therefore analyzed.


METHODS
Between 9/97 and 10/99 the visualization of orofacial tumours in 243 patients by 3D-US was examined, classified on a five-point scale and compared to the corresponding CT and MRI scans.


RESULTS
Complete visualization of the tumours was possible in 85.6 % by 3D-US, whereas the rates of MRI and CT were lower with 77.4 % and 61.3 % respectively, mainly because of artifacts. The best combinations of methods, 3D-US + CT (96.7 %) and 3D-US + MRI (95.1 %) gave almost equivalent results, whereas CT + MRI (83.5 %) was inferior. In 2.5 % of the cases none of the methods produced adequate results.


CONCLUSIONS
By free selection of sectional planes and direct correlation to the clinical findings 3D-ultrasound can improve staging, therapy planning and follow-up of orofacial tumours, especially in the case of small tumour size, dental crowns/inlays, metal implants or contraindications to MRI.
Mende
U
U
Radiologische Universitätsklinik, Abt. Klinische Radiologie und Poliklinik, Heidelberg, Germany.
Krempien
R
R
Hassfeld
S
S
Wörn
H
H
Mühling
J
J
Wannenmacher
M
M
D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006801:Humans; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D011379:Prognosis; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013813:Therapy, Computer-Assisted; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D014463:Ultrasonography