HILAR CHOLANGIOCARCINOMA: THE POTENTIALITIES OF ULTRASONIC DIAGNOSIS IN ASSESSING THE DEGREE OF PATHOLOGICAL ALTERATION OF BILE DUCT WALL

The analysis of the results of clinical-instrumental tests on 99 patients suffering from tumors or benign damages of proximal bile ducts complicated by obstructive jaundice compared to the control including patients without any cholagogic pathology has been carried out. The potentialities of ultrasonic diagnosis in detecting tumor affection of bile ducts at hilar cholangiocarcinoma as well as in differential diagnosing of tumor affection and benign damages of the liver and gallbladder have been studied. The echo-sign of pathological alteration of bile duct wall has been proposed. The frequency of the echo-sign in the clinical group compared to the control has been analyzed. We have come to the conclusion that detailed examination of bile duct walls and the lumen of common, left and right hepatic ducts should be included into diagnostic examination of a patient due to the fact that the proposed method can contribute to the revealing of hilar cholangiocarcinoma. This ultrasound symptom can be exploited in differential diagnosing of different portal fissure damages and in revealing of the type of tumor growth.