Objective: To explore the value of contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) in the diagnosis of renal cystic lesion.
Methods: Totally 88 patients with 97 atypical cystic lesions of kidneys were examined by conventional ultrasound (color Doppler flow imaging and power Doppler flow imaging), CEUS, and contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CECT), respectively. The results from the three imaging approaches were classified by Bosniak classification system and compared with each other. In patients who underwent surgeries, the pathological results were used to validate the imaging results.
Results: The results of CEUS and CECT on atypical cystic lesions were not significantly different (P > 0.05). The results gained by conventional ultrasound were significantly different from those of CEUS and CECT (P < 0.05). Compared with the pathological results of 32 patients who underwent surgery, the sensitivities of CEUS in the diagnosis of benign, doubtfully malignant, and malignant cystic tumors of kidney were 63.2%, 95.0%, and 94.7%, respectively, the specificities were 92.9%, 76.9%, and 85.7%, respectively, and the accuracies were 75.8%, 87.9%, and 90.0%, respectively.
Conclusions: The classification of atypical cystic lesions using CEUS is highly consistent with CECT. CEUS is valuable in the diagnosis of benign and malignant renal cystic lesions.