Pitfalls of the Lactating Breast on Computed Tomography

Incidental Breast Findings on Computed Tomography and MR Imaging

Computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance (MR) imaging may demonstrate a wide variety of incidental findings in the breast, including primary breast carcinoma, the second most common cancer in women. It important to recognize the spectrum of pathologic conditions in order to properly assess the need for further workup. Some findings may be diagnosed as benign on the basis of CT/ MR imaging and clinical history alone, whereas others will require evaluation with dedicated breast imaging and possibly biopsy. This article serves to guide radiologists' management of the wide spectrum of incidental breast findings encountered on cross-sectional imaging.

Intramammary Findings on CT of the Chest - a Review of Normal Anatomy and Possible Findings

Computed tomography (CT) is a frequently performed examination in women of all ages. In all thoracic CT examinations of the chest at least parts of the breasts are included. Therefore incidental breast pathology may be observed. It has been suggested that one out of 250 women undergoing chest CT will show a malignant incidental breast lesion. Given the high number of performed chest CT examinations, this contributes to a significant number of malignancies. In this review, after a brief discussion of the value of computed tomography in breast imaging, normal and pathologic findings are discussed to create awareness of this potential “black box” on chest CT.

Benign breast lesions detected by positron emission tomography-computed tomography

(18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission computed tomography (FDG PET-CT) is widely used in the initial staging and response evaluation of patients with malignancy. This review describes a spectrum of benign breast findings incidentally detected by FDG PET-CT at staging that may be misinterpreted as malignancy. We describe the pattern of distribution and intensity of FDG uptake in a spectrum of benign breast diseases with their corresponding typical morphological imaging characteristics to help the nuclear medicine physician and/or general radiologist identify benign lesions, avoiding unnecessary breast imaging work-up and biopsies.

Assessment of techniques of massage and pumping in the treatment of breast engorgement by thermography

OBJECTIVE

to evaluate techniques of massage and pumping in the treatment of postpartum breast engorgement through thermography.

METHOD

the study was conducted in the Human Milk Bank of a hospital in Curitiba, Brazil. We randomly selected 16 lactating women with engorgement with the classification lobar, ampullary and glandular, moderate and intense. We compared the differential patterns of temperature, before and after the treatment by means of massage and pumping.

RESULTS

we found a negative gradient of 0.3°C of temperature between the pre- and post-treatment in the experimental group. Breasts with intense engorgement were 0.7°C warmer when compared with moderate engorgement.

CONCLUSION

massage and electromechanical pumping were superior to manual methods when evaluated by thermography.

REBEC

U1111-1136-9027.