Angiomyolipoma: imaging findings in lesions with minimal fat

Abstract

Purpose: To investigate a method of diagnosing angiomyolipoma that contains minimal fat.

Materials and methods: In six cases of angiomyolipoma with minimal fat, the attenuation on contrast material-enhanced and unenhanced computed tomographic (CT) images, the echogenicity on sonograms, the signal intensity on T2-weighted magnetic resonance (MR) images, and the gross configuration of the lesion were retrospectively analyzed. In 100 cases of renal cell carcinoma, the same parameters were analyzed, and results were compared with those of angiomyolipoma.

Results: When compared with the surrounding renal parenchyma, all six angiomyolipomas showed homogeneously high attenuation on unenhanced CT images, homogeneous enhancement on contrast-enhanced CT images, and homogeneous isoechogenicity on sonograms. Of the five angiomyolipomas examined with MR imaging, four were hypointense and one was isointense on T2-weighted images. All six angiomyolipomas protruded from the renal margin. None of the 100 renal cell carcinomas showed homogeneously high attenuation on unenhanced CT images, homogeneous enhancement on contrast-enhanced CT images, or homogeneous isoechogenicity on sonograms.

Conclusion: In the kidney, homogeneously high attenuation on unenhanced CT images, homogeneous enhancement on contrast-enhanced CT images, and homogeneous isoechogenicity on sonograms are suggestive of angiomyolipoma that contains abundant muscle and minimal fat.