Virtual Colonoscopy: A Practical Guide

Description

Virtual colonoscopy, or CT colonography, is a rapidly evolving technique for the detection of tumoral lesions in the colon. It is now accepted by the American Cancer Society as a valuable screening tool for both colorectal cancer and its adenomatous precursor. Virtual colonoscopy requires state-of-the-art technique with rigorous preparation, colonic distension, and optimization of scanning parameters. Dedicated reading, analysis, and reporting of the data sets are mandatory. With contributions from a number of leaders in the field, this book addresses all the important issues relating to virtual colonoscopy. There is a particular focus on practical aspects: how to start virtual colonoscopy in your department, the regular preparation, the importance of fecal tagging, how to reduce the preparation, how to obtain optimal colonic distension, and the correct scanning parameters. Imaging characteristics and pitfalls are considered in detail, with an extensive pictorial review of difficult lesions; the importance of computer-aided diagnosis is also discussed. In this second edition the text has been updated with the latest study results and developments in technology and new illustrations have been included. This book will be invaluable to every radiologist seeking information on how to perform the exciting technique of virtual colonoscopy. Front Matter....Pages i-xii Why We Do CTC: Screening for Colorectal Cancer....Pages 1-15 The Performance of CTC....Pages 17-28 Starting CT Colonography in Your Department....Pages 29-35 The Eligible Patient: Indications and Contraindications....Pages 38-47 Patient Preparation for CT Colonography....Pages 49-59 The Prerequisite: Faecal Tagging....Pages 61-73 How to Get the Colon Distended?....Pages 75-86 Right Parameters....Pages 87-95 How to Interpret CTC Data: Evaluation of the Different Lesion Morphologies....Pages 98-110 How to Avoid Pitfalls in Imaging: Causes and Solutions to Overcome False-Negatives and False-Positives....Pages 111-137 3D Imaging: Invaluable for the Correct Diagnosis?....Pages 139-152 The Challenge: Detection of Early-Stage Superficial Colorectal Lesions....Pages 153-163 Extracolonic Findings....Pages 165-173 The Future: Computer-Aided Detection....Pages 175-189 Quality and Consistency in Reporting CT Colonography....Pages 191-197 Virtual Colonoscopy: Beyond Polyp Detection....Pages 199-217 Pictorial Overview of Normal Anatomy, Mimics of Disease, and Neoplasia Using CT Colonography....Pages 219-239 Back Matter....Pages 241-253