Hypoechoic focal liver lesions in granulomatous hepatitis and hemochromatosis.

Hypoechoic focal liver lesions are described, for the first time, in two patients with granulomatous hepatitis and hemochromatosis, and presenting a 'bright liver pattern' at ultrasonography. CT-scan was not able to make evident such areas in both cases, while hepatoscintigraphy revealed them only in the patient with granulomatous hepatitis. Echoguided fine-needle biopsies on the focal lesions were suitable for the correct final diagnoses. The finding of such areas was probably due to different intensity of the diseases in contiguous zones of liver parenchyma.