Abstract
The presence of positive lymph nodes along the inferior mesenteric artery (IMA) in patients with cancer of the sigmid colon and rectum has a significant impact on the treatment modality. We have tried to detect lymph nodes metastasis in this region ultrasonographically using 7.5 MHZ probe, in patients with cancer of the Sigmoid colon and rectum preoperatively. Since January of 1988, 100 screening patients and 55 patients with cancer of the sigmoid colon and rectum have been studied.
In the 100 cases of screening patients, IMA were depicted in 88 %, and not depicted in 12 %. The reasons for IMA nonvisualized ultrasonically were obesity, and not age and sexuality. The distances of the IMA visualized ultrasonically were as follows : shorter than 20 mm ; in 9 cases, 21-19mm ; in 38 cases, and longer than 40 mm ; in 41 cases.
In the 55 cases of rectosigmoid cancer, we detected IMA ultrasonically in 85.5 % of the total cases and we made the diagnosis swelling of the lymph nodes in 15 cases, of whom 9 cases were histopathologically metastatic lymph nodes : sensitivity 100 %, specificity 84.2 %, positive predictive value 60 %, and negative predictive value 100 %.
