Articles
Articles are a collaborative effort to provide a single canonical page on all topics relevant to the practice of radiology. As such, articles are written and continuously improved upon by countless contributing members. Our dedicated editors oversee each edit for accuracy and style. Find out more about articles.
719 results found
Article
Focal fatty sparing of the liver
Focal fatty sparing of the liver is the localized absence of increased intracellular hepatic fat, in a liver otherwise fatty in appearance i.e. diffuse hepatic steatosis. Recognition of this finding is important to prevent the erroneous belief that the region of sparing is itself a mass.
Epidem...
Article
Hepatic hydatid infection
Hepatic hydatid disease is a parasitic zoonosis caused by the Echinococcus tapeworm. In the liver, two species are most commonly recognized as causing disease in humans:
Echinococcus granulosus
Echinococcus multilocularis
For a general discussion, and links to other system-specific manifestat...
Article
Atresia
Atresia (plural: atresias) refers to a situation where there is absence, underdevelopment or abnormal closure, of a normal anatomical tubular structure or opening.
Contrast this with agenesis which refers to the complete absence of any anatomical structure including its primordial precursors.
...
Article
Mass-forming intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma
Mass-forming intrahepatic cholangiocarcinomas (MF-ICC), also referred as peripheral cholangiocarcinomas, comprise one of the three recognized growth patterns of intrahepatic cholangiocarcinomas.
On imaging, these tumors usually present as large and relatively well-defined hepatic masses with l...
Article
Hepatic neuroendocrine tumor
Primary hepatic neuroendocrine tumors (carcinoids) is an extremely rare type of neuroendocrine tumor, with somewhere between 60-90 cases reported in the literature. Metastatic neuroendocrine tumor from the gastrointestinal tract to the liver is far more common.
Clinical presentation
Some patie...
Article
Hemorrhagic pancreatitis
Hemorrhagic pancreatitis is characterized by bleeding within or around the pancreas, and is usually considered a late sequela of acute pancreatitis.
Pathology
Hemorrhage can occur in patients with severe necrotizing pancreatitis or as a result of pancreatic pseudoaneurysm rupture when it const...
Article
Thoracic splanchnic nerves
The thoracic splanchnic nerves are three paired autonomic nerves that provide sympathetic innervation of the abdominopelvic viscera and vessels. They contain efferent and afferent fibers.
Gross anatomy
Three pairs of thoracic splanchnic nerves arise from the T5 to T12 sympathetic ganglia.
Gre...
Article
Hepatofugal
Hepatofugal or non-forward portal flow (NFPF) is an abnormal flow pattern in which the portal venous flow is from the periphery of the liver towards the porta hepatis and backwards along the portal vein. This phenomenon is not uncommon in patients with liver disease 3.
It is the opposite of hep...
Article
Cirrhosis (CNS manifestations)
There are several central nervous system complications that can arise in the setting of cirrhosis, which can be classified as those which are general (essentially hepatic encephalopathy) and those that are specific to the cause of cirrhosis.
General manifestations
The major manifestation is he...
Article
Hepatic angiosarcoma
Hepatic angiosarcoma is a rare malignancy but is still the third most common primary liver tumor. They have a variable appearance on both CT and MRI, reflecting the pleomorphic histological nature. Prognosis is very poor, with survival uncommon beyond one year from diagnosis.
Terminology
Hepa...
Article
Alpha-1-antitrypsin deficiency
Alpha-1-antitrypsin (A1AT) deficiency is an autosomal codominant metabolic disorder and is the most common genetic cause of emphysema and metabolic liver disease in children. It results in the unopposed action of neutrophil elastase and subsequent severe basal panlobular emphysema and respirator...
Article
Generalized reduced hepatic echogenicity
Causes of generalized reduction of liver echogenicity on ultrasound include:
acute hepatitis
diffuse malignant infiltration
See also
generalized increase in liver echogenicity
hepatic attenuation on CT
Article
Amylase
Amylase is widely employed as a marker of acute pancreatitis and a significant elevation is diagnostic.
Physiology
α-amylase is a digestive enzyme that is predominantly secreted by the acinar cells of the exocrine pancreas. It is also secreted by the salivary glands. Pancreatic amylase is enco...
Article
Spontaneous splenorenal shunt
A spontaneous splenorenal shunt (or simply splenorenal shunt) refers to an abnormal collateral portosystemic communication between the splenic vein and the left renal vein. It is one of the features of portal hypertension.
See also
portosystemic shunts
surgical splenorenal shunt
Article
Pancreatic metastases
Pancreatic metastases are uncommon and are only found in a minority (3-12%) of patients with widespread metastatic disease at autopsy. They account for only 2-5% of all pancreatic malignancies.
Epidemiology
Demographics will match those of the primary tumor, but in general, will be in elderly ...
Article
Cullen sign
Cullen sign refers to superficial edema visible as periumbilical discolouration and is most commonly seen in patients with acute pancreatitis 1-3.
Clinical presentation
Clinically patients with pancreatitis present with epigastric pain that radiates to the umbilical/periumbilical region and th...
Article
Sonographic Murphy sign
Sonographic Murphy sign is defined as maximal abdominal tenderness from the pressure of the ultrasound probe over the visualized gallbladder 1,2. It is a sign of local inflammation around the gallbladder along with right upper quadrant pain, tenderness, and/or a mass 2.
It is one of the most im...
Article
Lipomatous pseudohypertrophy of the pancreas
Lipomatous pseudohypertrophy of the pancreas is a rare, benign entity characterized by focal or diffuse enlargement of the pancreas due to the replacement of exocrine parenchyma with adipose tissue.
Terminology
Arguably lipomatous pseudohypertrophy may be considered a distinct clinicopathologi...
Article
Stauffer syndrome
Stauffer syndrome is paraneoplastic nephrogenic hepatomegaly. It most commonly occurs in the setting of renal cell carcinoma, and is the enlargement of the liver without hepatic metastases. It is a cause of cholestasis and cholestatic jaundice.
History and etymology
It is named after Maurice ...
Article
Portosystemic collateral pathways
Portosystemic collateral pathways, also called spontaneous portosystemic shunts or varices, develop spontaneously via dilatation of pre-existing anastomoses between the portal and systemic venous systems. This facilitates shunting of blood away from the liver into the systemic venous system...
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