Gallbladder Polyp





KEY FACTS


Imaging





  • Single or multiple small, round/ovoid masses attached to gallbladder (GB) wall with no posterior acoustic shadowing




    • Usually sessile but may be pedunculated with well-defined stalk




  • Usually 2-10 mm in size, most commonly in middle 1/3 of GB



  • Cholesterol polyp: Small with comet-tail artifact



  • Avascular or hypovascular on Doppler examination




    • Larger lesions may have slight internal vascularity




  • Consider neoplastic GB polyp if size > 10 mm, irregular outline, sessile morphology with abnormal GB wall and invasion of adjacent structures, growth on serial US examinations



Top Differential Diagnoses





  • Hyperplastic cholecystosis/adenomyomatosis



  • Nonshadowing cholelithiasis or sludge



  • Adenoma



  • Carcinoma or metastasis



Pathology





  • Polypoid lesions include cholesterol polyp, adenomyomatosis, and neoplasms such as adenoma, carcinoma, and metastases



Clinical Issues





  • 5% of population have polyps; 50% are cholesterol polyps



  • More common in middle age; F > M; incidental finding




    • < 6 mm: No follow-up



    • 7-9 mm: Yearly US follow-up to monitor size



    • > 10 mm: Surgical consult




Scanning Tips





  • Scan in supine, decubitus (left or right lateral) positions to demonstrate immobility of GB polyp



  • Look for color flow in polyp and for any abnormality of adjacent GB wall, which might indicate cancer







Graphic shows well-circumscribed, pedunculated nodules arising from the gallbladder (GB) wall, compatible with cholesterol polyps. Note the preserved GB wall without invasion to the adjacent liver parenchyma.








Longitudinal ultrasound shows a cholesterol polyp on the anterior wall of the GB. Note the ring down artifact . There are also dependent stones with acoustic shadowing.








Longitudinal oblique ultrasound in the decubitus position shows a cholesterol GB polyp with comet-tail artifact . This was an incidental finding in a patient with chronic liver disease and ascites .








Longitudinal ultrasound in left lateral decubitus position shows an asymptomatic, fixed polypoid lesion in the GB neck. Given its size, follow-up is recommended.

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Nov 10, 2024 | Posted by in ULTRASONOGRAPHY | Comments Off on Gallbladder Polyp

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