Journal of clinical ultrasound : JCU
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Clinical Trial
Sonographic diagnosis and monitoring of localized langerhans cell histiocytosis of the skull.
Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) is an infrequent disorder of unknown origin associated with histiocytic proliferation. The bones' involvement (including cranial bones) is the most frequent manifestation of pediatric LCH. Imaging of skull LCH is based predominantly on conventional radiography, CT, scintigraphy, and sometimes MRI. The aim of the study was to investigate the role of sonography (US) in the diagnosis and monitoring of bone lesions in children with localized LCH of the skull. ⋯ The US appearance of focal LCH lesions in cranial bones in children is not pathognomonic, but is characteristic enough to suggest an initial diagnosis and to monitor the evolution of lesions during treatment. US should be considered an additional diagnostic tool for LCH of the skull. Although US of localized LCH cannot replace CT, it could reduce the number of follow-up CT examinations.