Skin Ultrasound in Dermatologic Surgical Planning

Abstract

High-resolution ultrasonography was performed on 55 patients with palpable skin lesions, all submitted to surgical excision and to histologic diagnosis. In all the cases, the ultrasound picture was confirmed by the surgical appearance of the lesions. The sonographic structure was characteristic in the case of cysts and angiomas, lymphangiomas in particular. Ultrasonography is considered a simple and reliable technique for the pre-operative evaluation of skin nodules, as it gives a clear picture of their size, depth, and outline. However, sonography cannot substitute for the clinical dermatologic approach and the need for an histologic diagnosis.

The Use of High-Frequency Ultrasound as a Method of Assessing the Severity of a Plaque of Psoriasis

“…COMMENT In this study, we used high-frequency, B-mode, 40-MHz ultrasound scanning to image plaques of psoriasis. In early studies, 15-MHz ultrasound A-scans or amplitude-mode scans demonstrated that the thickness of psoriatic plaques is increased compared with normal skin.34-35 When plaques of psoriasis are viewed using ultrasound imaging, bands of varying echogenicity have been observed.24"32-34-35 At 40 MHz, ultrasound images of psoriasis exhibit a three-layer structure similar to that reported by el-Gammal et al 31 We found that (1) band A corresponds to the scaly parakeratotic cell layers and the suprapapillary epidermis; (2) band B represents the edematous and congested papillary der¬ mis in the elongated epidermal rete ridges; and (3) band C is associated with the underlying reticular dermis (Fig¬ ures 1 and 2).…”

Real‐time spatial compound ultrasound imaging of skin

“…In haemangioma and nevus, RTSCI gives information about tumour thickness and structure, and identifies intradermal extension, which is potentially useful for the planning of surgical procedures and for monitoring. A previous study of skin tumours found that the sonographic pattern corresponded to the surgical findings and the histopathologic picture (8). Harland et al investigated 29 basal cell papillomas and 25 melanomas with high‐resolution ultrasound (20 MHz B‐scan imaging).…”

Ultrasound Biomicroscopy of Eyelid Lesions

“…In the dermatologic literature, several studies have shown the efficacy and accuracy of high-resolution ultrasound systems to quantitatively assess skin lesions and diseases [6, 7, 8, 9], particularly within the range of the epidermis and dermis (3–4 mm). Skin tumor depth measurements with a 20 MHz probe have been shown to correlate well with histolopathologic measurement [10].…”