Contrast-enhanced ultrasound-guided musculoskeletal biopsies: our experience and technique

MRI Differential Diagnosis and Guidance for Puncture Biopsy of Musculoskeletal Dedifferentiated Liposarcoma and Well Differentiated Liposarcoma

Objective

The study aimed to investigate the significantly different imaging characteristics of musculoskeletal dedifferentiated liposarcoma (DDLP) and well differentiated liposarcoma (WDLP) on MRI, which in turn could guide puncture biopsy.

Materials and Methods

This study included 14 patients with DDLP and 16 patients with WDLP, all of whom were confirmed by histopathological examination. The MRI manifestations of these two pathologies were retrospectively reviewed and compared. Furthermore, a step-by-step procedure regarding preoperative puncture biopsy of fatty masses that are suspicious for WD/DD was designed.

Results

Fatty signals can be found in almost all WDs, with a greater proportion of non-fatty areas in DD compared to WD, and it is reasonable to consider WD more likely when the non-fatty areas of the tumor are <25% (p < 0.05), while it is reasonable to consider DD more likely when the non-fatty areas of the tumor are >50% (p < 0.05), and the MRI signals in DD are more complex, inhomogeneous (p < 0.01), usually showed significant enhancement (p < 0.01), and the margins of the tumor were usually indistinct (p < 0.01); and imaging features such as tumor size, vascularity, necrosis, and peritumoral edema did not serve as distinguishing features between the two (p > 0.05).

Conclusion

DD has a greater proportion of non-fatty components, with more complex and inhomogeneous MRI signals, and typically shows significant enhancement, with usually indistinct margins of the tumor, in which the inhomogeneous manifestations are associated with the histological components. The possibility of DD should be considered in fatty tumors with non-fatty areas > 25%, for which puncture biopsy is necessary, while simultaneous puncture of low, moderate, high-signal areas within the non-fatty area could improve the accuracy of preoperative puncture pathology.

Myxofibrosarcoma involving brachial plexus diagnoses by contrast-enhanced ultrasound: A case report

RATIONALE

Myxofibrosarcoma most commonly arises as a slowly enlarging, painless mass. We describe an unusual case of low-grade myxofibrosarcoma in the axillary fossa, which infiltrated the brachial plexus, axillary artery, and axillary vein, causing severe pain. The low incidence and complex anatomical structure make imaging examination and surgery face great challenges. To the best of our knowledge, such presentation of a low-grade myxofibrosarcoma that showed an extreme infiltrative growth pattern and presented severe pain has not been reported before.

PATIENT CONCERNS

We reported a case of low-grade myxofibrosarcoma developed around the axillary neurovascular bundle, with multiple peripheral metastases in an 87-year-old male. Physical examination revealed a mass on the right axillary fossa measuring 5 × 4 cm. The patient underwent computed tomography but no definite diagnosis was obtained. Because he had claustrophobia and could not perform MRI examination. Thus, he underwent conventional ultrasound and contrast-enhanced ultrasound. Ultrasonic examination not only accurately determines the invasion scope of the tumor, but also clearly shows that the nerve has suffered from the invasion of the exogenous tumor and multiple metastatic foci around it. The contrast enhancement mode of the tumor showed centripetal high-enhancement, uneven internal enhancement, visible enhanced bridge, and non-enhancing central area.

DIAGNOSES

Combined with the results of conventional ultrasound and contrast-enhanced ultrasound, we highly suspected it to be soft tissue sarcoma, giving strong clinical assistance.

INTERVENTIONS

Given the risk of sarcoma implantation along the needle track and the underestimation of tumor malignancy, an excisional biopsy was considered the most practical choice to avoid unnecessary pain and potential implantation.

OUTCOMES

The patient underwent surgery and a histopathological examination of the lesion confirmed it as low-grade myxofibrosarcoma.

LESSONS SUBSECTIONS

This report describes a rare case of myxofibrosarcoma of the axillary fossa. High-resolution ultrasound is increasingly used for the initial assessment of soft-tissue masses. However, there are few reports about the ultrasound and contrast-enhanced ultrasound examinations of myxofibrosarcoma. Accurate preoperative diagnosis and proper treatment strategies are critical in managing patients with myxofibrosarcoma. Our case may provide diagnosis experiences and will help better understand and treat this disease.

Contrast-enhanced ultrasound guided core needle biopsy for soft tissue tumors: Accuracy and applicability

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the effectiveness of contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) guided core needle biopsy (CNB) in diagnosing soft tissue tumors (STTs) and to identify the conventional ultrasonography (US) features of STTs that are recommended for CEUS-guided CNB.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A retrospective study was conducted on 123 patients with surgically confirmed STTs. Before surgeries, all subjects underwent CNB under the guidance of US or CEUS. The histopathological results of surgical specimens were considered as the gold standards. A successful biopsy diagnosis was defined as the pathological subtypes obtained by biopsy consistent with the gold standard. The diagnostic yields were compared between the US and CEUS groups, and the diagnostic yields based on various conventional US features of STTs were also compared between the two groups.

RESULTS

Sixty-seven cases underwent US-guided CNB and fifty-six cases underwent CEUS-guided CNB. The clinical, biopsy, and conventional US characteristics revealed no significant difference between the two groups. The diagnostic yield of the CEUS group was statistically higher than that of the US group (p = 0.011). In the CEUS group, more STTs with the anechoic areas were identified after CEUS examination (p = 0.031). Furthermore, the diagnostic yields based on the conventional US features of STTs, including deep fascia layer (p = 0.010), a maximum diameter ≥5 cm (p = 0.037), rough margin (p = 0.016), heterogeneous echotexture (p = 0.017), and absence of anechoic area (p = 0.013), were significantly different between the two groups, and the CEUS group exhibited higher diagnostic yields.

CONCLUSION

CEUS-guided CNB was found to be an efficient method for STTs diagnosis. It is particularly recommended for STTs with the following conventional US features, including location in deep fascia layer, a maximum diameter ≥5 cm, rough margin, heterogeneous echotexture, or absence of anechoic area.

Comparison of Ultrasound Contrast between H2O2-Responsive Nanoparticles and Microbubble Contrast According to Muscle Injury in Rat Models

Ultrasound contrast agents are clinically used for diagnosis of internal organs, but ultrasound contrast agents are rarely applied clinically in musculoskeletal disorders. Our study aims to comparatively analyze the differences between ultrasonographic images through peri-injury injection of the clinically used microbubble and researched nanoparticle contrast agents in various muscular injury models. To compare contrast-enhanced images in different muscle injury models, we prepared groups of rats with sham, laceration, punch, contusion, and toxin injection injuries. We measured H2O2 levels using the Amplex Red assay by extracting tissue from the damaged area. As comparative contrast agents, SonoVue®, a commercially available microbubble contrast agent, and poly(vanillinoxalte) (PVO) nanoparticles, which are H2O2-responsive nanoparticles, were used. The difference in contrast between the two contrast agents was recorded as an ultrasound movie, and J-image software 1.53p was used to quantify and analyze the maximum and minimum echogenicity values of the images after contrast enhancement. In the Amplex red assay for the highest H2O2 level in each muscle injury model, the maximum level showed 24 h after the modeling. In the sham rats, PVO injection showed no increased echogenicity except at the needle insertion site, but SonoVue® injection showed increased echo signal throughout the injected muscle immediately after injection. One day after the preparation of the lesion, PVO and SonoVue® were injected into the lesion site and ultrasound was performed on the lesion site. After the injection of PVO nanoparticles, contrast enhancement was observed at the lesion site immediately. SonoVue® injections, on the other hand, showed a widespread pattern of echo signals and an increase in echo retention only at the lesion site over time, but this was not clear. There were statistically significant differences between the highest and lowest echogenicity in PVO and SonoVue® contrast-enhanced images in all models. Contrast enhancement lasted more than 3 h in the PVO injection, but disappeared within 3 h in the SonoVue® injection. PVO nanoparticles showed the possibility of physiologic contrast by CO2 generated by conjugation with H2O2 generated by muscle injuries, and SonoVue® injection observed the possibility of microbubble contrast as a contrast agent with a pooling effect that lasts longer on the lesion. Further research is needed to investigate the use of various ultrasound contrast agents, including nanoparticles, in musculoskeletal disorders, as well as the potential for further utilities of microbubble contrast agents.

Practical approach to ultrasound of soft tissue tumors and the added value of MRI: how I do it

This review outlines a practical approach to the everyday assessment of both non-neoplastic and neoplastic soft tissue tumors, focusing on ultrasound examination, though emphasizing the added benefit of magnetic resonance imaging in certain instances. Ultrasound approach and assessment, practical scenarios, reporting, biopsy, and follow-up are covered, as well as the criteria used to distinguish benign from malignant tumors. The potential benefits and current limitations of elastography and contrast-enhanced ultrasound in assessment are also addressed. Examples of commonly encountered soft tissue tumors are shown. Ultrasound can characterize most soft tissue masses based on their ultrasound appearance alone. Following ultrasound examination, three potential scenarios usually exist in clinical practice: (a) confident regarding diagnosis, (b) indeterminate mass with no evidence of malignancy, and (c) indeterminate mass with possibility of malignancy. A diagnostic pathway for each of these scenarios is provided. Magnetic resonance imaging is generally not helpful in further characterizing masses which are indeterminate on ultrasound assessment, though it is helpful in addressing other issues such as exact tumor location and neurovascular bundle involvement that may not be fully resolved on ultrasound examination. In these situations, magnetic resonance imaging examination can be tailored to address those specific questions that have not been adequately addressed on ultrasound examination. In this sense, both examinations are highly complementary. Tips for undertaking magnetic resonance imaging examinations are provided.

Update of Contrast-enhanced Ultrasound in Musculoskeletal Medicine: Clinical Perspectives - A Review

Contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) uses an intravascular contrast agent to enhance blood flow signals and assess microcirculation in different parts of the human body. Over the past decade, CEUS has become more widely applied in musculoskeletal (MSK) medicine, and the current review aims to systematically summarize current research on the application of CEUS in the MSK field, focusing on 67 articles published between January 2001 and June 2021 in online databases including PubMed, Scopus, and Embase. CEUS has been widely used for the clinical assessment of muscle microcirculation, tendinopathy, fracture nonunions, sports-related injuries, arthritis, peripheral nerves, and tumors, and can serve as an objective and quantitative evaluation tool for prognosis and outcome prediction. Optimal CEUS parameters and diagnostic cut off values for each disease category remain to be confirmed.

Sarcoma Imaging Surveillance

Soft tissue sarcomas (STS) are a heterogeneous group of solid tumors. There are many histologic subtypes. The prognosis after treatment may be estimated by the analysis of the type of tumor, grade, depth, size at diagnosis, and age of the patient. These type of sarcomas most commonly metastasize to the lungs and may have a relatively high rate of local recurrence, depending on the histologic type and surgical margins. Patients with recurrence have a poorer prognosis. The surveillance of patients with STS is therefore extremely important. This review analyzes the role of MR imaging and US in detecting local recurrence.

Detection and management of bleeding in the setting of image-guided percutaneous needle biopsy

Image-guided percutaneous needle biopsy (PNB) is an important and increasingly utilized method of minimally invasive tissue sampling for a broad variety of disease processes. While infrequent, major bleeding is a potential complication of PNB and can be life-threatening, especially when unrecognized. On the other hand, prompt recognition and treatment of major bleeding in this setting can prevent significant morbidity or mortality. It is therefore crucial for anyone performing PNB to be familiar with the diagnosis and management of bleeding complications. This article reviews the risk factors for major bleeding in the setting of PNB, the presentation and imaging findings of a spectrum of bleeding complications encountered during and following PNB, and the management of those findings based on experience at a single, high volume, biopsy center.