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Value of sonography in the diagnosis of abnormal vaginal bleeding
Author(s) -
Dubinsky Theodore J.
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
journal of clinical ultrasound
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.272
H-Index - 61
eISSN - 1097-0096
pISSN - 0091-2751
DOI - 10.1002/jcu.20049
Subject(s) - medicine , vaginal bleeding , biopsy , endometrial cancer , endometrial polyp , endometrial biopsy , etiology , radiology , gynecology , cancer , pathology , hysteroscopy , pregnancy , genetics , biology
Abnormal vaginal bleeding is one of the most common presenting complaints in women of any age seeking gynecologic health care. Two of the most frequently used diagnostic tests to investigate the cause of the bleeding are endometrial biopsy and transvaginal sonography. The most worrisome cause of abnormal bleeding is endometrial carcinoma, yet benign etiologies are far more prevalent, including fibroids, polyps, and endometrial atrophy. Endometrial biopsy and transvaginal sonography have equal sensitivities for carcinoma, but sonography is far more effective in diagnosing benign disease. This article reviews the state‐of‐the‐art in the diagnostic evaluation of abnormal vaginal bleeding and analyzes the data, with emphasis on the prevalence of benign and malignant disease as the basis for determining whether sonography or biopsy is more cost‐effective in evaluating women with abnormal vaginal bleeding. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Ultrasound 32:348–353, 2004