Thickened bile duct wall simulating ductal dilatation on sonography.

Primary sclerosing cholangitis: sonographic findings

“…However, when taken in isolation, thickening of the wall of CBD is a nonspecific finding and may also be caused by cholangiocarcinoma, other causes of sclerosing cholangitis, choledocholithiasis, oriental cholangiohepatitis, and pancreatitis [14,15]. Sonographic abnormalities of the gallbladder in PSC have been described previously [13].…”

Primary sclerosing cholangitis

“…In the appropriate clinical setting, as in patients with ulcerative colitis and hepatobiliary symptoms, the sonographic finding of CBD wall thickening is highly suggestive of PSC [16][17][18][19]. However, when taken in isolation, thickening of the wall of the CBD is a nonspecific finding and may also be caused by cholangiocarcinoma, other causes of sclerosing cholangitis, choledocholithiasis, AIDS-related cholangitis, oriental cholangiohepatitis, and pancreatitis [21][22][23]. In a study of 121 patients with well documented PSC, 41% had intrinsic abnormalities of the gallbladder including gallstones (26%), PSC involving the gallbladder (15%), and benign or malignant neoplasms (4%) [20].…”