Purpose: To compare power and conventional color Doppler sonography in the depiction of the intratumoral vasculature of hemangiomas, hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs), and metastases of the liver.
Materials and methods: Thirty-two patients with liver tumors (12 hemangiomas, 11 HCCs, and nine metastases) were prospectively evaluated with power and conventional color Doppler sonography by using a 2-4-MHz convex probe with 2-MHz Doppler frequency. Power Doppler sonography was performed with a 75%-88% gain. Conventional color Doppler sonography was performed with a 55%-75% gain and a pulse repetition frequency of 700 Hz. Power Doppler signals and color Doppler signals interrogated in one plane were analyzed by two radiologists, who subjectively rated power Doppler sonography as superior, equal, or inferior to color Doppler sonography.
Results: Overall, power Doppler sonography was superior to color Doppler sonography in 18 patients and equal in 14 (P < .01). In hemangiomas, power Doppler sonography was superior to color Doppler sonography in 10 patients and equal in two (P < .01). In HCCs, power Doppler sonography was superior to color Doppler sonography in four patients and equal in seven (P > .05). In metastases, power Doppler sonography was superior to color Doppler sonography in four patients and equal in five (P < .05).
Conclusion: Power Doppler sonography is more sensitive than color Doppler sonography in the depiction of the vasculature of liver tumors, particularly in hemangiomas.