Echo-enhanced ultrasonography: is it the future gold standard of imaging in acute pancreatitis?
We report the imaging of a patient in whom the diagnosis of acute pancreatitis and the assessment of disease severity was carried out using echo-enhanced ultrasonography. Contrast-enhanced computed tomography confirmed the echo-enhanced ultrasonography picture. Echo-enhanced ultrasonography may become the imaging technique of choice in assessing the severity of acute pancreatitis since it is easy to perform, safe and lends itself to emergency situations. Most importantly, this technique should be also useful for following-up patients and it may be also an alternative to MRI in those patients in whom contrast-enhanced computed tomography cannot be carried out.
Brocchi
Emilio
E
Department of Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology, Sant'Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
Piscaglia
Fabio
F
Bonora
Miriam
M
Celli
Natascia
N
Venturi
Annamaria
A
Fantini
Lorenzo
L
Tomassetti
Paola
P
Corinaldesi
Roberto
R
Pezzilli
Raffaele
R
D000208:Acute Disease; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D010179:Pancreas / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology; D010195:Pancreatitis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D014463:Ultrasonography / Q000379:methods