Feasibility of low-dose unenhanced multi-detector CT in patients with suspected acute appendicitis: comparison with sonography.

OBJECTIVES: To compare unenhanced low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) and ultrasound (US) in patients with suspected acute appendicitis. METHODS: A total of 104 patients underwent US and LDCT examinations within an hour. RESULTS: Thirty-nine of the 104 patients had surgically confirmed acute appendicitis. Sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy for US vs. LDCT were 82.5% vs. 92.5%, 83% vs. 89%, and 82.7% vs. 90.4%, respectively. The area under the curve (Az) was 0.85 for US and 0.92 for LDCT. The diagnostic performance of LDCT was better than US (P<.001). CONCLUSIONS: Unenhanced LDCT is a feasible technique in the diagnosis of acute appendicitis.