Imaging features of adenomyosis

Caroline Reinhold, C Reinhold, F Tafazoli, L Wang
Human reproduction update · 1998 · vol. 4(4) , pp. 337–349 · doi:10.1093/humupd/4.4.337 · PMID:9825849 · W2095732787
review OA: closed CC0 ⤵ 118 in-corpus citations
View on OpenAlex View on PubMed View at publisher
⚙ AI-generated summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-08 ⓘ

This review presents the spectrum of imaging findings of adenomyosis detected by non-invasive techniques and discusses diagnostic pitfalls and the role of these modalities.

One-sentence paraphrase of the abstract; not a substitute for reading it. No clinical advice. How this works

Abstract

This review focuses on non-invasive imaging techniques that have proven useful in diagnosing adenomyosis, including hysterosalpingography, transabdominal and endovaginal ultrasound, as well as magnetic resonance imaging. An understanding of the histopathological features of this disease is crucial when attempting to interpret the associated imaging findings. The muscular hyperplasia accompanying the heterotopic endometrial tissue actually produces the typical gross appearance of adenomyosis and corresponds to areas of decreased echogenicity or signal intensity on ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging respectively. The heterotopic endometrial tissue also contributes to the imaging appearance of adenomyosis, and with the advent of high resolution imaging techniques, these changes are being detected with increasing frequency, including the presence of myometrial nodules, linear striation, poor definition and nodularity of the endo-myometrial junction, pseudowidening of the endometrium, and myometrial cysts or haemorrhagic foci. The purpose of this review is to (i) present the spectrum of imaging findings of adenomyosis, (ii) illustrate potential pitfalls in diagnosis and (iii) review the accuracy and role of currently available noninvasive imaging techniques.

My notes (saved in your browser only)

Condition tags

mesh:D004715adenomyosis

MeSH descriptors

Diagnostic Imaging Endometriosis Abdomen Endometriosis Endometriosis Female Humans Hysterosalpingography Magnetic Resonance Imaging Ultrasonography Vagina

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.

References (45)

Cited by (50)

Source provenance

europepmc
last seen: 2026-06-04T01:30:01.192114+00:00
openalex
last seen: 2026-06-04T00:00:01.174412+00:00
pubmed
last seen: 2026-05-13T22:10:35.327253+00:00
License: CC0 · commercial use OK