Efficacy of Color Doppler Ultrasonography in Differentiation of Ovarian Masses

AIM: Early and correct diagnosis of ovarian masses has great impact on the ultimate survival. The present study was done to know the role of color Doppler studies in characterization of ovarian masses and to evaluate its efficacy in diagnosis and differentiation of these neoplasms when used along with grayscale (B-mode) ultrasonography (USG). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Over 2 years, in total, 98 patients with adnexal masses were examined, of which only 60 patients who had ovarian masses and were satisfying inclusion criteria were evaluated sonographically. Grayscale transabdominal and transvaginal sonography was followed by color Doppler with fixed parameters and indices. The results differentiated on sonographic and color Doppler examination were compared with the final diagnosis, based on histopathological examination. RESULTS: Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV) of grayscale ultrasound in detecting malignancy in ovarian masses in the current study were calculated to be 51.85%, 75.75%, 63.63%, and 65.78%, respectively. By combining grayscale and color flow finding, the current study was able to differentiate malignant tumors from benign tumors with a sensitivity of 81.48%, specificity of 93.93%, PPV of 91%, and NPV of 86.11%. CONCLUSION: The present study demonstrates a significant increase in the sensitivity, specificity, PPV, and NPV in establishing the preoperative diagnosis of ovarian masses in terms of benign and malignant nature, when color and spectral Doppler was used in combination with USG as compared to grayscale (B-mode) USG alone.