Saba Luca, Sulcis Rosa, Melis Gian Benedetto, de Cecco Carlo Nicola, Laghi Andrea, Piga Mario, Guerriero Stefano
Department of Radiology, Azienda Ospedaliero Universitaria (A.O.U.), Monserrato, Italy
Department of Radiology, Azienda Ospedaliero Universitaria (A.O.U.), Monserrato, Italy.
Acta Radiol. 2015 Mar;56(3):355-67. doi: 10.1177/0284185114526086. Epub 2014 Mar 27.
Several imaging options are available today to diagnose endometriosis. Currently, the two techniques most used are sonography and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Three-dimensional (3D) sonography has proved to be particularly sensitive in the diagnosis of endometriosis. In recent years, MRI has emerged as a high reproducible method to explore endometriosis; moreover, its capability to evaluate tissue signal is an extremely powerful system in the differential diagnosis with other pathologies and for the identification of malignant degeneration. The purpose of this paper is to present the state-of-the-art of MRI of endometriosis by performing a review of the literature and showing the epidemiology, pathogenesis, and classification of endometriosis. In this work, the technique that should be used, MR findings of endometriosis and the principles of differential diagnosis are explained.
