title: [Imaging diagnosis of small hepatocellular carcinoma using ultrasound, contrast-enhanced ultrasound and multislice spiral CT].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the value of gray-scale ultrasound, contrast-enhanced ultrasound and multislice spiral CT in early and differential imaging diagnosis of small hepatocellular carcinoma (SHCC).
  
  
  METHODS
  This study included 35 patients with space-occupying lesions in the liver identified by routine ultrasound examination. The hemodynamics of the patients was recorded during the arterial, portal and lag phases using contrast-enhanced ultrasound. The enhancement features of the 3 phases were observed using multislice spiral CT. All the cases were confirmed by pathological examinations.
  
  
  RESULTS
  For SHCC diagnosis, gray-scale ultrasound, contrast-enhanced ultrasound and multislice spiral CT showed a sensitivity of 77.8%, 94.4%, and 100%, specificity of 88.2%, 100%, and 94.1%, positive predictive value of 87.5%, 100%, and 94.7%, negative predictive values 78.9%, 94.4%, and 100%, concordance rate of 82.9%, 97.1%, and 97.1% and Younden index of 0.66, 0.94, and 0.94, respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Contrast-enhanced ultrasound and multislice spiral CT have significantly greater diagnostic efficacy than gray-scale ultrasound in early and differential diagnosis of SHCC. But in some atypical cases, gray-scale ultrasound, contrast-enhanced ultrasound and multislice CT have to be combined to establish a diagnosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
authors.forename: Lin
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Dai
authors.forename: Xiao-rong
authors.initials: XR
authors.lastname: Feng
authors.forename: Yong-peng
authors.initials: YP
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Wei-qun
authors.initials: WQ
authors.lastname: Wen
authors.forename: Yi-kai
authors.initials: YK
authors.lastname: Xu