The dilated pancreatic duct: ultrasonic evaluation.

Eight patients with signs and symptoms of obstructive jaundice were evaluated by gray-scale echography. In each, ultrasonic identification of a dilated pancreatic duct was helpful in confirming the diagnosis of an obstructing lesion at the level of the ampulla of Vater. In only 3 could the tumor mass itself be seen on ultrasound. With the recognition of pancreatic duct dilatation, it is no longer essential for a tumor in the region of the ampulla of Vater to be large or contour-deforming before it can be identified by ultrasound.