Abstract
Objective: Hepatic hemangioma is commonly detected in health check-up using ultrasonography. It is well known that ultrasonography sometimes fail to reveal the lesion in the follow-up ultrasonography for the patients with hepatic hemangiomas. In this paper, we analyzed the ultrasonographic detection rate and serial changes of ultrasonographic findings of hepatic hemangiomas in health check-up. Methods: We investigated the detection rate and ultrasonographic findings of hepatic hemangiomas in 47,557 examinees who were undergone ultrasonography in health check-up between April 1996 and March 2005. We also investigated the serial changes of ultrasonographic findings of hepatic hemangiomas in 243 patients who had the health check-up between April 2001 and March 2002. In these 243 patients, ultrasonography was performed in almost once a year after April 2002. Results: Hepatic hemangioma was detected in 2,571 out of 47,557 examinees. The detection rate was 5.4%. The lesion was hyper echoic in 87.2% lesions and hypo echoic in 10.7% lesions. The mixed echo level was observed in 2.1% lesions. Although ultrasonography could reveal 139 out of 243 lesions every year, ultrasonography could not reveal 23 lesions after April 2002. As to the rest 26 lesions, ultrasonography could or could not reveal the lesions through the years. Conclusion: We must pay attention to the history of the ultrasonographic findings in examinees, when we perform ultrasonography in health check-up.
