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Review
. 2014 Jan;6(1):1-5.
doi: 10.4103/1947-2714.125852.

Color-Doppler ultrasound in the diagnosis of oral vascular anomalies

Gaimari Gianfranco  1 , Fioravanti Eloisa  1 , Cantisani Vito  2 , Guerrisi Raffaele  2 , Tenore Gianluca  1 , Romeo Umberto  1
Affiliations
Review

Color-Doppler ultrasound in the diagnosis of oral vascular anomalies

Gaimari Gianfranco et al. N Am J Med Sci. 2014 Jan.

Abstract

In last few years, thanks to laser technology with minimally invasive approach, there was a growing need for treatment of oral vascular malformations inside the dental offices. Generally, the diagnosis of oral vascular malformations is based on clinical history, clinical examination and imaging exams. In the present paper, we review, researching by PubMed, the technical aspects, clinical indications, potentialities and limitations of color-Doppler ultrasound in the work-up of oral vascular malformations. Different imaging modalities are encountered for the diagnosis and follow-up of these lesions such as computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, color-Doppler ultrasound and angiography. To date, color-Doppler ultrasound is considered the first-line imaging approach since it provides a non-invasive, cost effective, real time evaluation of oral vascular anomalies. It provides both morphological and vascular information, which are useful to determine the best therapeutic options. Ultrasonography, for these reasons, could be considered as a valuable diagnostic tool in the preliminary assessment of oral vascular anomalies.

Keywords: Color-Doppler ultrasound; hemangiomas; oral cavity; vascular malformations.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest: None declared.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
(a) Clinical aspect arteriovenous malformation of the tongue. (b) Color-Doppler US image shows an hypoechoic lesion with lobulated margins with some color-flow signal within it with spectral features compatible with arterial flow. (c) Color-Doppler US with spectral analysis reveals a venous waveform in a different vessel
Figure 2
Figure 2
(a) Clinical image arteriovenous malformations of the tongue. (b) Color-Doppler US image (longitudinal plane), with a hypoechoic lesion presented diffuse vascular signals within the lesion. (c) Arterial feeding vessels were easily depicted
Figure 3
Figure 3
(a) Clinical appearance venous malformation of the right cheek. (b) At color-Doppler US image, the lesion appeared heterogeneously hypoechoic with multiple anechoic sinusoidal spaces (longitudinal plane) with mild vascularization. (c) At spectral analysis monophasic venous flow was detected
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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