Objective To observe the value of ultrasound-guided percutaneous ethanol injection(PEI)combined with microwave ablation(MWA)for treating thyroid benign partially cystic masses.Methods A total of 100 patients with single benign partially cystic mass who would undergo ultrasound-guided ablation treatment were prospectively enrolled.The patients were randomly assigned into PEI group(received PEI combined with MWA sequential ablation)or control group(received simple MWA),each n=50.Data before and after treatments were compared within groups,the therapeutic efficacy were compared between groups after treatments,and the value of sequential ablation was analyzed.Results Ultrasound-guided ablation was successfully performed for all 100 masses.During follow-up,5 cases in PEI group and 3 cases in control group were lost.The operation time of MWA,total MWA energy and patients'pain level during treatments in PEI group were all lower than those in control group(all P＜0.05).Significant difference of thyroid mass volumes were found before and 3,6 and 12 months after treatments in both groups(all P＜0.05).The volume reduction rate(VRR)in PEI group before and 1,3,6 and 12 months after treatments were all higher than that in control group(all P＜0.05).The success rate was 95.56％(43/45)in PEI group and 89.36％(42/47)in control group 12 months after treatments,respectively,without significant difference(P=0.451).There were significant differences of neck aesthetics scores and symptom scores before and 3,6 and 12 months after treatments in both groups(all P＜0.05).The incidence of complications in PEI group was 6.67％(3/45),while in control group was 14.89％(7/47),the former was lower than the latter(P＜0.05).Conclusion Ultrasound-guided PEI combined with MWA sequential ablation had better effect for treating thyroid benign partially cystic masses than single MWA.

Purpose To investigate the safety and effectiveness of ultrasound-guided microwave ablation(MWA)in the treatment of abdominal wall endometriosis(AWE).Materials and Methods A total of 17 patients(19 lesions)with AWE who underwent MWA in Beijing Friendship Hospital from August 2014 to June 2023 were retrospectively analyzed.Grey-scale and color Doppler flow ultrasonography,and contrast-enhanced ultrasonography were used to observe the lesions before and after treatment.The AWE lesion volume,volume reduction rate,pain relief,and complications were recorded 3,6,and 12 months after treatment to evaluate the treatment efficacy.Results Contrast-enhanced ultrasound showed that all lesions underwent successful treatment with single MWA.The average initial nodule volume was(7.46±5.82)ml,which decreased significantly to(4.32±2.76)ml,(2.47±1.68)ml,(1.72±1.16)ml at 3,6 and 12 months follow-up(t=0.423,P=0.005;t=0.198,P=0.001;t=0.556,P=0.002)with a mean volume reduction rate of(46.18±24.36)%,(61.43±18.72)%,(74.25±13.26)%,respectively.Notably,all 17 patients experienced a significant decrease or complete alleviation of periodic abdominal incision pain at 12-month after treatment.One patient experienced local skin burns after the procedure,while the remaining patients did not experience severe complications.Conclusion MWA is safe and effective for treating AWE,and further research is warranted.

Objective:To explore the relationship between the characteristics of contrast-enhanced ultrasound and the invasiveness of clear cell renal cell carcinoma.Methods:A total of 63 patients with clear cell renal cell carcinoma who were confirmed by surgical pathology of Beijing Friendship Hospital of Capital Medical University from January 2014 to November 2021 were selected retrospectively.According to the results of pathology,they were divided into an invasive group(11 cases)and a non-invasive group(52 cases).The features of contrast-enhanced ultrasound,which included perfusion time,regression time,enhancement degree,enhancement mode,pseudocapsule and perfusion defect,were analyzed.Results:The contrast-enhanced ultrasound of clear cell renal cell carcinoma mostly showed fast perfusion,slow regression,high enhancement and uneven enhancement,while there were no significant differences between the two groups(P>0.05).In the comparison of the features of routine ultrasound of invasive group and non-invasive group,there was significant difference in the size of tumor,and the medians of the maximum diameters of them were respectively 6.60(3.30,8.80)cm and 3.60(2.63,4.88)cm.The maximum diameter of invasive group was larger,and there was significant difference between the two groups(Z=-2.346,P<0.05).The ratio of perfusion defect of invasive group was significantly higher than that of non-invasive group,and the ratio of pseudocapsule of tumor of non-invasive group was significantly higher than that of invasive group,and there were significant differences between the two groups(x2=9.450,5.839,P<0.05).Conclusion:A larger diameter of the tumor and a higher ratio of perfusion defect prefer to invasive clear cell renal cell carcinoma,and the features of the contrast-enhanced ultrasound will contribute to predict the invasiveness of clear cell renal cell carcinoma before surgery,which may provide the basis for clinical treatment.

Objective:To investigate value of contrast-enhanced ultrasound(CEUS)in predicting ischemic-type biliary lesions(ITBLs)in patients with thickened hilar bile duct wall at early stage after liver transplantation.Methods:A total of 45 patients,who underwent liver transplantation at the Liver Transplantation Center of Beijing Friendship Hospital Affiliated to Capital Medical University from June 25,2020 to December 28,2022,and occurred hilar bile duct wall thickening at early stage after surgery,were prospectively included.CEUS was performed on biliary tract when the thickened hilar bile duct wall was first detected by routine ultrasound,and the enhanced mode of duct wall at each phase was recorded.Subsequently,according to the results of cholangiography,these patients were divided into ITBLs group(15 cases)and non-ITBLS group(30 cases).The enhanced degree of each phase of CEUS of two groups was qualitatively analyzed and compared,and the diagnostic efficacy of CEUS for ITBLs after liver transplantation was evaluated.Results:There were no significant differences in source of liver donor,biliary anastomosis,autoimmune liver disease,hepatic artery occlusion(HAO),rejection,cytomegalovirus infection and cholangitis between the two groups(P>0.05).The compared results of the enhanced mode of CEUS at arterial phase between the two groups indicated that 25 patients(83.3%)were hyper-enhancement,and 5 patients(16.7%)were iso-enhancement,and 0 patient was hypo-enhancement or non-enhancement in non-ITBLS group.The compared results also indicated that 3 patients(20.0%)were hyper-enhancement,and 4 patients(26.7%)were iso-enhancement,and 8 patients(53.3%)were hypo-enhancement or non-enhancement in ITBLs group.The difference of above results between the two groups was statistically significant(x2=22.946,P<0.000).There was no significant difference between the two groups in the enhanced mode at the late phase(P>0.05).The accuracy,sensitivity,specificity,positively predictive value and negatively predictive value of the prompted hypo-enhancement or non-enhancement at arterial phase of CEUS on biliary tract were respectively 84.4%,53.3%,100%,100%and 84.4%in diagnosing ITBLs.For 8 patients who were diagnosed as ITBLs by CEUS,the diagnostic time of CEUS for ITBLs was 1 to 6 months[3.0(1-5)months]ahead of that of cholangiography.Conclusion:CEUS can more accurately predict ITBLs before the biliary tract occurs significant morphological change,which can significantly advance the diagnostic time for ITBLs.

Objective:To investigate the relationship of HRAS gene mutation and lymph node metastasis and ultrasonographic characteristics in differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC).Methods:The clinical data of 162 patients with DTCs who underwent thyroidectomy and confirmed by postoperative pathological examination in Beijing Friendship Hospital from January 2014 to February 2019 were retrospectively analyzed. There were 139 patients with papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC group) and 23 patients with follicular thyroid carcinoma (FTC group); the PTC were further classified as classic variant of papillary thyroid carcinoma (CVPTC, n=34), follicular variant of papillary thyroid carcinoma (FVPTC, n=36) and tall cell variant (TCV, n=69). Tissue HRAS mutation frequency was detected in 162 DTC patients and 19 patients with follicular adenoma (FA); blood HRAS mutation frequency was detected in 195 healthy subjects. The correlation between HRAS mutation (IVS1-82del gctgggcctggg) and cervical lymph node metastasis was analyzed, and the ultrasonographic characteristics of DTC patients were also analyzed. Results:The frequency of HRAS mutation in DTC patients was higher than that in healthy controls[37.0%(60/162) vs. 26.2%(51/195), χ2=4.538, P=0.03], while there was no significant difference between FTC and FA [39.1%(9/23) vs. 5/19, χ2=0.769, P=0.38]. In DTC patients there was no significant difference in cervical lymph node metastasis between HRAS mutation group and wild type group [57.3% (43/75) vs. 42.6% (32/75), χ2=1.898, P=0.16]. Among CVPTC, FVPTC and TCV patients, the rates of cervical lymph node metastasis were 7/12, 8/14 and 48.0% (12/25) in HRAS mutation group, while those were 50.0% (11/22), 40.9% (9/22) and 43.1% (19/44) in wild-type group, respectively (χ2=1.009, P=0.98).There were 9 patients with HRAS mutation in FTC group, and the cervical lymph node metastasis in mutation group and wild-type group was 5/9 and 4/14, respectively ( P=0.38). The ultrasonographic characteristics of PTC patients with HRAS mutation were more likely to have clear boundaries [66.7%(34/51) vs. 42.0%(37/88); χ 2=7.833, P<0.01] and not close to the membrane[84.3%(43/51) vs. 65.9%(58/88);χ2=5.506, P=0.02]. Conclusion:DTC patients are more likely to have HRAS (IVS1-82del gctgggcctggg) mutation, and the ultrasonic characteristics of DTC patients with HRAS mutation are likely to have clear boundaries and be not close to the membrane.

Objective To investigate the correlation of BRAF mutation frequency with cervical lymph node metastasis ,and to compare the ultrasonic characteristics in patients with BRAF mutation in papillary thyroid carcinoma ( PTC) different subtypes . Methods The tumor samples were collected from 139 PTC patients who underwent thyroidectomy . And they were classified by histological subtype into 3 groups:classic variant of papillary thyroid carcinoma (CVPTC) group( 34 cases) ,follicular variant of papillary thyroidcarcinoma (FVPTC) group(36 cases) ,tall cell variant (TCV) group(69 cases) . The BRAF mutation frequency and the correlation with cervical lymph node metastasis among 3 groups were analyzed , then the ultrasonic characteristics with BRAF mutation in PTC different subtypes were compared . Results①The frequency of BRAF mutation was statistically significant different in different subtypes( χ2 =6 .390 , P =0 .041) ,and the frequency in TCV was 86 .9％ . There was also a statistical difference between BRAF mutation frequency and cervical lymph node metastasis among three subtypes ( χ2 = 13 .106 , P =0 .041) .②There was no statistically significant difference among the three groups in nodule number ,echo level , internal structure ,boundary ,crossbar ,morphology and acoustic halo of patients with BRAF mutation ( P >0 .05) . ③ A single factor analysis was performed for the ultrasonographic characteristics of patients with BRAF mutation ,and there were significant statistical differences among the 3 groups in calcification type (χ2 = 21 .7 , P = 0 .001 ) and close to the envelope (χ2 = 7 .726 , P = 0 .021 ) . ④ Multivariate logistic regression showed that BRAF mutation was an independent influence factor affecting the calcification type of different histological subtypes in PTC patients.Conclusions ①BRAF mutation is correlated with cervical lymph node metastasis in different PTC subtypes . ② BRAF mutation is an independent influence factor affecting the morphology type of different calcification subtypes in PTC . The CVPTC group is mainly microcalcification ,and the TCV group is mainly macrocalcification .

Objective To analyze thyroid papillary carcinoma (PTMC) neck lymph node metastasis (LNM) related factors,and further to explore the diagnostic value of ultrasonography in LNM.Methods A retrospective analysis of 384 cases of patients with PTMC confirmed by pathology and ultrasonic data were performed,according to the presence of cervical lymph node metastasis,they were divided into transfer group (116 cases) and nontransfer group (268 cases).Analysis was made to summarize the clinical and sonographic features of the two groups.Chi-square test and the multi-factor Logistic regression analysis were used to study the risk factors.Results ①The single factor analysis of sonographic features showed that the factors of gender (X 2 = 3.893,P = 0.048),age (P = 0.001),tumor diameter (P = 0.008), boundary(X 2 =6.327,P =0.012),acoustic halo (X2 = 15.562,P =0.001),and place (X 2 =9.441 ,P =0.024) were statistical different between the two groups;②Multiariable Logistic regression analysis showed that:patient age,tumor diameter,and acoustic halo were independent risk factors for PTMC neck lymph node metastasis,if Logistic model was used to predict the probability P =0.50 as a threshold,its accuracy was 74.2%,and the area under the ROC curve was 0.744.Conclusions Patients with age ≤ 45 years, tumor diameter ≥ 0.7 cm,located in the lower pole,boundary with uneven acoustic halo,were prone to LNM,and easy to Ⅵ area,suggest preventive cleaning lymph node in central region.

Cardiovascular disease is the first cause of death in Chinese residents. Arterial elasticity is an important and independent predictor for mortality of cardiovascular disease, and pulse wave velocity (PWV) is the most frequently used measurement index. It has been widely used in clinical practice. Traditional methods detecting PWV have some disadvantages, such as arteries distribution not clear, branch affect and only obtain global and average, instead of regional PWV. Now, the measurement of local pulse wave velocity has played an important role in the study of arterial elasticity. The common methods of detecting regional pulse wave velocity include echo tracking technique, UltraFast imaging technique and pulse wave imaging technique. This article reviews the recent advances in pulse wave velocity evaluating vascular elasticity.

Objective:To investigate the effects of static ultrasound elastography on the elastic modulus of normal breast tissue.Methods: (1)Fifteen cases of normal breasts was tested by static ultrasound elastography at the same locations. Intercepted two pictures each time with one stress-free and the other compressed the maximum amount. For these two cases we measured the breast thickness and calculated the minimum stretch ratios(λ). (2)Fifty breasts with no breast nodules were prospectively enrolled in the study. Intercepted two pictures each time with one stress-free and the other compressed to the minimum stretch ratios(λ). For these two cases we measured the Elastic modulus (E0, Em, kPa). Calculate the elastic modulus change ratio (Rm/0).Results: (1)The minimum stretch ratio caused by static ultrasound elastography was 0.74±0.07. (2)The elastic modulus change ratio of static ultrasound elastography was 4.38±1.72. Conclusion: The normal operation of static ultrasound elastography caused 74 percent deformation in normal breast tissue. There was 4.38 times elastic modular increasing caused by 74 percent deformation in normal breast tissue.

ObjectiveTo study the diagnostic value of sonographic “Leopard pattern” sign in breast hyperplasia.MethodsTwo hundred and twenty-three female patients in Beijing Friendship Hospital from October 2012 to April 2013 were choosen. All the cases were diagnosed as mammary gland hyperplasia clinically, and their breast ultrasound images show the breast imaging-reporting and data system (BI-RADS) grad was 0 or 1. These patients were divided into 3 groups according to their age, Group A: 20 to 35 age (36 cases), Group B: 36 to 50 age (102 cases), and Group C: order than 50 year-old (85 cases). The pathological diagnosis were obtained by ultrasound guided breast biopsy. With pathological diagnosis as the gold standard and “Leopard sign” as ultrasound diagnostic criteria, the sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive predictive value and negative predictive value were calculated. The consistency between the ultrasonic and the pathological diagnosis were analyzed by Kappa statistical test.ResultThe diagnostic consistency test of the total sample of 223 cases: in terms of the ultrasonic Leopard sign” for the diagnosis of breast hyperplasia, the sensitivity was 69% (59/85),the specificity was 46% (64/138), the accuracy was 55% (123/223), the positive predictive value was 44% (59/133), the negative predictive value was 71% (64/90), the consistency was poor (Kappa=0.14,P<0.05). Group A:the sensitivity was 90% (18/20), the specificity was 50% (8/16),the accuracy was 72% (26/36), the positive predictive value was 69% (18/26), the negative predictive value was 80% (8/10), the consistency was good (Kappa=0.42, P<0.05);Group B:the sensitivity was 70% (33/47), the specificity was 49% (27/55),the accuracy was 59% (60/102), the positive predictive value was 54% (33/61), the negative predictive value was 66% (27/41), the consistency was poor (Kappa=0.19,P<0.05); Group C: the sensitivity was 44% (8/18), the specificity was 43% (29/67), the accuracy was 44% (37/85), the positive predictive value was 17% (8/46), the negative predictive value was 74% (29/39), the consistency was poor (Kappa=0.08,P<0.05).Conclusion“Leopard pattern” sign is not suitable as an independent standard in diagnosing breast hyperplasia disease.