Diagnosis of gallbladder carcinoma with color Doppler ultrasonography

A 65-yr-old woman was referred to our department for evaluation of a gallbladder lesion detected at another institution, where she was diagnosed with chronic cholecystitis. Conventional ultrasonography revealed that the gallbladder lumen was filled with debris-like components, and the gallbladder wall was mildly thickened. Color Doppler ultrasonography revealed color signals in both the lesion and the gallbladder wall. These signals showed a high-speed pulsatile wave, and one of the visualized signals revealed a high- resistance index (1.0) on fast Fourier transform analysis. These findings were highly suggestive of malignancy. Surgery was performed, and histological examination of the resected specimen revealed carcinoma of the gallbladder. We conclude that color Doppler ultrasonography can be useful in the diagnosis of tumefactive gallbladder lesions.