GU Flashcards
(160 cards)
What separates the three components of the retroperitoneum?
Separated by the anterior and posterior renal fascia and lateral conal fascia
What are the three compartments of the retropertoneum?
Anterior pararenal space
Perirenal space - surrounds each kidney
Posterior pararenal space
What is in the anterior pararenal space?
Ascending colon
Descending colon
(2nd and 3rd) duodenum
Pancreas
What is in the perirenal space?
Surrounds each kidney
Kidneys
Proximal ureter
Adrenals
Lots of fat
What is in the posterior pararenal space?
Potential space, contains only fat
May become secondarily involved in inflammatory processes
Clinically important as a pathway for potential disease spread due to secondary involvement of inflammation or neoplasm.
MC primary retroperitoneal retroperiteonal tumor?
Liposarcoma
What is retroperitoneal fibrosis?
Rare inflammatory disorder causing increased fibrotic deposition in the retroperitoneum, often leading to ureteral obstruction.
Unlike malignant retroperiteonal adenopathy, retroperitoneal fibrosis tends not to elevate the aorta off the spine.
What are the two components of the adrenal glands and what are they derived from?
The cortex is derived from mesothelium
The medulla is derived from neural crest
What does the adrenal cortex make?
Synthesizes the steroid hormones aldosterone, glucocorticoids, and androgens, which are all biochemical derivatives of cholesterol.
What are the three layers of the adrenal cortex and what do they make?
Zona glomerulosa (most superficial): Produces aldosterone.
Zona fasciculata: Produces glucocorticoids in response to pituitary adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH).
Zona reticularis (deepest; closest to the adrenal medulla): Produces androgens.
What pathology can affect the adrenal cortex?
Adrenal hyperplasia
Adrenal adenoma
Adrenal cortical carcinoma
What does the adrenal medulla make?
Central portion of the adrenal gland and produces the catecholamines norepinephrine and epinephrine, which are derived from tyrosine.
What pathology can affect the adrenal medulla?
Pathology of the adrenal medulla includes pheochromocytoma and the neuroblastic tumors (ganglioneuroma, ganglioneuroblastoma, and neuroblastoma).
Conditions associated with adrenal hyperfunction?
Cushing syndrome is excess cortisol production from non-pituitary disease, such as idiopathic adrenal hyperplasia, adrenal adenoma, or ectopic/paraneoplastic ACTH (e.g., from small cell lung cancer).
Cushing disease is excess cortisol production driven by excessive pituitary ACTH.
Conn syndrome is excess aldosterone production, most commonly from an adrenal adenoma, which causes hypertension and hypokalemia. The adenomas implicated in Conn syndrome are typically small and may be difficult to detect on CT. Localizing the side of excess hormone production with venous sampling may be a helpful diagnostic adjunct.
Adrenal cortical carcinoma is a very rare adrenal malignancy that arises from the cortex and typically causes a disordered increase in all cortical adrenal hormones and precursors.
Pheochromocytoma is a usually benign tumor of the adrenal medulla that causes an increase in catecholamines.
What is Waterhouse–Friderichsen syndrome?
Post-hemorrhagic adrenal failure secondary to Neisseria Meningitidis bacteremia.
Idiopathic adrenal hemorrhage is usually unilateral and rarely causes adrenal hypofunction.
What percentage of adrenal adenomas are lipid-rich (<10 HU)?
80%
What is a collision tumor?
Metastasis into an adrenal gland with a pre-existing adenoma
“Adenoma” appears heterogeneous or has shown an interval increase in size, then a collision tumor should be considered in a patietn with known primary even if region attenuates <10 HU.
Why do adrenal adenomas contain fat?
Intracytoplasmic lipid due to steroid production.
What malignancies also contain intracytoplasmic lipid and would also lose signal on out-of-phase images similar to an adenoma?
Well-differentiated adrenocortical carcinoma (very rare).
Clear cell renal cell carcinomas metastatic to the adrenal gland.
Hepatocellular carcinoma metastatic to the adrenal gland.
Liposarcoma (typically a predominantly fatty mass that is rarely confused with adrenal adenoma).
How do adenomas washout compared to metastases?
Adrenal adenomas demonstrate more rapid contrast washout than metastases do. The more rapid contrast washout of benign adenomas appears to be true even compared to adrenal metastases of hypervascular primaries.
The timing of the washout phase remains controversial, with recent evidence suggesting 15-minute washout has greater sensitivity than 10 minutes.
> 60% absolute washout is diagnostic of adenoma
What is the adrenal washout formula?
%washout = (enhanced attenuation - delayed attenuation) / (enhanced attenuation - unenhanced attenuation)
> 60% absolute washout is diagnostic of adenoma
What is adrenal relative washout?
If unenhanced CT is not available or not performed due to concern for radiation
exposure
% relative washout = (enhanced attenuation - delayed attenuation) / (enhanced attenuation)
> 40% relative washout is diagnostic of adenoma
What % washout is diagnostic of adenoma on absolute and relative?
Absolute >60%
Relative >40%
In patient with known primary what is a lesion that does not demonstrate benign washout kinetics?
Suspicious for, but not diagnostic of, metastasis.