The Importance of Ultrasonography in the Diagnosis of Epidermal Cysts and Lipomas in the Field of Dermatology / 대한피부과학회지

ABSTRACT

Background@#Ultrasonography (US) is a simple and reliable tool that can aid in the diagnosis of benign subcutaneous lesions such as epidermal cysts and lipomas. @*Objective@#This study aimed to determine the efficacy of US for the differential diagnosis of epidermal cysts and lipomas. @*Methods@#A retrospective study of 100 patients with epidermal cysts (n=45) or lipomas (n=55) who underwent US and then received a pathological diagnosis in the dermatology department of Pusan National University Hospital was conducted. @*Results@#US and clinical impressions accurately diagnosed the epidermal cysts in 90.0% and 88.0% of the patients, respectively, and the lipomas in 92.0% and 88.0% of the patients, respectively. US combined with clinical impression significantly increased the diagnostic yield of epidermal cysts (98%) and lipomas (99%). On US, the frequency of posterior acoustic enhancement was higher for the epidermal cysts than for the lipomas (82.2% and 29.1%, respectively; p＜0.001), and striated echoes such as internal linear echogenic reflections and dark clefts were more frequently found in the lipomas than in the epidermal cysts (90.9% and 6.7%, respectively; p＜0.001). @*Conclusion@#This study implies that the diagnostic role of US can be greatly enhanced by knowledge of the clinical presentation.