ABSTRACT
Objective To investigate the ultrasound characteristics of pseudothrombophlebitis.Methods The ultrasound characteristics of thirty-two popliteal cyst cases with pseudothrombophlebitis which were confirmed by MRI or puncture were retrospectively analyzed.The former group was matched with a case control group of sixty-four patients with asymptomatic popliteal cysts,the ultrasound images were comparative analysis between the two groups.Results Compared to the control group,both the length and width of the case group were larger [(12.4 ± 4.7) ×(2.5±0.4)cm vs (5.3±2.9) × (1.2±0.4)cm,P ＜ 0.001],and there were 18(43.8％) cases with the cysts extension into the calf.The case group were more prone to show cyst with poor ultrasound penetration or solid-cystic echo (78.1％ vs 9.4％,P =0.000),which were diagnosed as popliteal cyst with hematoma or infection.Six cases of case group showed irregular anechoic area surrounding the inferior border of the cysts,which were diagnosed as ruptured popliteal cyst,no similar imaging detected in the control group(P =0.001).Both the two group showed septation in the cyst,but it did not differ significantly(P ＞0.05).Conclusions Ultrasonography is helpful to the diagnosis of pseudothrombophlebitis,the ultrasound characteristics include large cyst extension into the calf,cyst with poor ultrasound penetration or solid-cystic echo and irregular anechoic area surrounding the inferior border of the cysts.