Ultrasonic diagnosis of renal and retroperitoneal lesions.

The unique ability of ultrasound to detect soft tissue interfaces makes it a prime tool for at least one major diagnostic approach to soft tissue lesions. Systematic ultrasonic examination of suspected masses in the abdomen should be performed early in the course of investigation. It will help direct additional studies and often result in cost savings by making the diagnostic process more efficient. The method is painless, to the best of our knowledge harmless and can be repeated at will for early study or late follow-up. The ultrasonic look into the body has provided us with a major tool for obtaining far more information on internal structures than was possible even a few years ago. Ultrasonic scans, radioisotope examinations and computerized x-ray tomography are leading us into an era of much increased anatomic knowledge about lesions which heretofore were obscure and difficult to evaluate.