Computed tomographic and B-mode ultrasonographic characteristics of normal, reactive, and neoplastic lymph nodes in dogs

Autor(es)

Anna Carolina Mazeto Ercolin

• Tipo de documento: Tese de Doutorado
• Imprenta: Pirassununga.
• Instituição: Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Faculdade de Zootecnica e Engenharia de Alimentos (FZE/BT)
• Data de defesa: 2022-10-07

Membros da banca

Luciano Andrade Silva; Marcus Antônio Rossi Feliciano; Bruno Ferrante; Aline Emerim Pinna; Cibely Galvani Sarto

• Orientador: Luciano Andrade Silva; Robson Fortes Giglio

Resumo

A wide range of scientific works described ultrasound and tomographic criteria that contribute to the differentiation between normal and abnormal lymph nodes, both in medicine and in veterinary medicine. However, these studies describe reactive and metastatic lymph nodes in the same group and many have no correlation with gold standard diagnostic methods. The present study investigated if inflammatory and neoplastic processes of canine lymph nodes produce alterations in anatomy and morphology suitable for ultrasonographic and tomographic detection. And, if those alterations found in the imaging exams are exclusive of each process, allowing the differentiation between reactive and neoplastic/metastatic lymph nodes. The first step described a retrospective study on the diagnostic performance of ultrasound for classifying normal lymph nodes as well as benign and malignant lymphadenopathy. 79 cranial cervical lymph nodes and 95 medial iliac and superficial inguinal lymph nodes were evaluated. The accuracy of ultrasonography to detect the status of the lymph nodes varied with the type of lymph node. More than 60% of lymph nodes with distal acoustic enhancement or cystic-like formations were associated with malignancy. In the second part, a systematic review analyzed qualitative evidences to test the hypothesis that computed tomography can differentiate normal lymph nodes from those affected by an inflammatory or metastatic process. Heterogeneous postcontrast enhancement pattern and irregular or indistinct margins may be associated with malignant etiologies. The perinodal fat tissue represents a natural contrasting surface and improves the detection of the lymph node. In general, both modalities benefit from the investigation based on the combination of parameters, such as margin and perinodal fat for tomography and size and echotexture for ultrasound. However, cytology and histopathology are the gold standard methods to diagnose inflammatory and neoplastic lymph nodes, for the provide information at the cellular level. (AU)

• Processo FAPESP: 20/04868-9 - Características ultrassonográficas e tomográficas de linfonodos normais, reativos e neoplásicos em cães e sua correlação com citologia e histopatologia
• Beneficiário: Anna Carolina Mazeto Ercolin
• Modalidade de apoio: Bolsas no Brasil - Doutorado