MRI in the Diagnosis of Endometriosis and Related Diseases

Aki Kido, Yuki Himoto, Yusaku Moribata, Yasuhisa Kurata, Yuji Nakamoto
Korean journal of radiology · 2022 · vol. 23(4) , pp. 426 · doi:10.3348/kjr.2021.0405 · PMID:35289148 · PMC8961012 · W4220963881
review OA: gold CC0 ⤵ 44 in-corpus citations
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⚙ AI-generated summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-07 ⓘ

MRI effectively diagnoses ovarian endometriotic cysts and deeply infiltrating endometriosis by identifying characteristic T2 hypointense lesions indicative of fibrosis.

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⚙ AI-generated deep summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-07 ⓘ

This 2022 paper is a review that synthesizes MRI evidence for diagnosing ovarian endometriotic cysts and deeply infiltrating endometriosis (DIE), including how MRI findings relate to lesion location, fibrosis/adhesions, and related physiological or pathological conditions. It describes characteristic ovarian cyst MRI features (e.g., T1-high signal multiplicity, T2-shading, and the T2 dark spot sign) and highlights that for DIE and secondary adhesions, fibrosis around ectopic glands is often seen as T2 hypointense lesions, while noting that the diagnostic value of some sequences (contrast-enhanced T1WI, DWI, susceptibility-weighted imaging) is not recommended specifically for ovarian cysts and DIE in the referenced protocol. A major caveat acknowledged is that diagnosis is ideally confirmed histologically via laparoscopy, and MRI requires specific preparation and protocol choices to optimize detection (including considerations around bladder/vaginal/rectal preparation and motion control). This paper is centrally about endometriosis — it provides a review of MRI findings, optimal imaging protocol, and interpretation for ovarian endometriotic cysts and DIE.

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Abstract

Endometriosis, a common chronic inflammatory disease in female of reproductive age, is closely related to patient symptoms and fertility. Because of its high contrast resolution and objectivity, MRI can contribute to the early and accurate diagnosis of ovarian endometriotic cysts and deeply infiltrating endometriosis without the need for any invasive procedure or radiation exposure. The ovaries, which are the most frequent site of endometriosis, can be afflicted by multiple related conditions and diseases. For the diagnosis of deeply infiltrating endometriosis and secondary adhesions among pelvic organs, fibrosis around the ectopic endometrial gland is usually found as a T2 hypointense lesion. This review summarizes the MRI findings obtained for ovarian endometriotic cysts and their physiologically and pathologically related conditions. This article also includes the key imaging findings of deeply infiltrating endometriosis.

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Condition tags

endometriosis

MeSH descriptors

Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Female Female Female Female Female Female Humans Humans Humans Humans Humans Humans Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Citation neighborhood

Papers in the corpus that this work cites (lower rings, blue) and that cite this one (upper rings, green). Dot size scales with the paper's in-corpus citation count — bigger dot = more influential within the endo/adeno field. Click a dot to open that paper. [ expand to 2 hops ] — adds papers reached through this work's immediate citers/citees. Heavier; up to 60 extra dots.

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Cited by (44)

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