Abdominal Wall Masses: CT Findings and Clues to Differential Diagnosis

Abstract

The abdominal wall does not comprise a distinct organ, and is often cursorily evaluated on CT. However, it is affected by many different pathological processes. These may be categorized according to their underlying etiology-trauma, infection or inflammation, iatrogenic and neoplastic process-or according to the abdominal wall layer they affect. We chose instead to group these lesions into 6 distinct categories based on their CT characteristic density: solid, infiltrative, hypervascular, fluid, fat, and bone density lesions. We highlight throughout the article the importance of integrating pertinent clinical history to narrow the differential diagnosis.