ACR Appropriateness Criteria Chronic Liver Disease.

Because liver fibrosis can be treated, it is important to diagnose liver fibrosis noninvasively and monitor response to treatment. Although ultrasound (grayscale and Doppler) can diagnose cirrhosis, it does so unreliably using morphologic and sonographic features and cannot diagnose the earlier, treatable stages of hepatic fibrosis. Transient elastography, ultrasound elastography with acoustic radiation force impulse, and MR elastography are modalities that can assess for hepatic fibrosis.

ACR Appropriateness Criteria Suspected Liver Metastases.

Liver metastases are the most common malignant liver tumors. The accurate and early detection and characterization of liver lesions is the key to successful treatment strategies. Increasingly, surgical resection in combination with chemotherapy is effective in significantly improving survival if all metastases are successfully resected.

ACR Appropriateness Criteria Pretreatment Staging of Colorectal Cancer.

Colorectal cancers are common tumors in the United States and appropriate imaging is essential to direct appropriate care. Staging and treatment differs between tumors arising in the colon versus the rectum. Local staging for colon cancer is less integral to directing therapy given radical resection is often standard.

ACR Appropriateness Criteria Chronic Liver Disease.

Because liver fibrosis can be treated, it is important to diagnose liver fibrosis noninvasively and monitor response to treatment. Although ultrasound (grayscale and Doppler) can diagnose cirrhosis, it does so unreliably using morphologic and sonographic features and cannot diagnose the earlier, treatable stages of hepatic fibrosis. Transient elastography, ultrasound elastography with acoustic radiation force impulse, and MR elastography are modalities that can assess for hepatic fibrosis.

ACR Appropriateness Criteria Crohn Disease.

Crohn disease is a chronic inflammatory disorder involving the gastrointestinal tract, characterized by episodic flares and times of remission. Underlying structural damage occurs progressively, with recurrent bouts of inflammation. The diagnosis and management of this disease process is dependent on several clinical, laboratory, imaging, endoscopic, and histologic factors.

ACR Appropriateness Criteria® Right Lower Quadrant Pain--Suspected Appendicitis.

The most common cause of acute right lower quadrant (RLQ) pain requiring surgery is acute appendicitis (AA). This narrative's focus is on imaging procedures in the diagnosis of AA, with consideration of other diseases causing RLQ pain. In general, Computed Tomography (CT) is the most accurate imaging study for evaluating suspected AA and alternative etiologies of RLQ pain.

ACR Appropriateness Criteria colorectal cancer screening.

Colorectal cancer is the third leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States. Most colorectal cancers can be prevented by detecting and removing the precursor adenomatous polyp. Individual risk factors for the development of colorectal cancer will influence the particular choice of screening tool.

ACR appropriateness criteria jaundice.

A fundamental consideration in the workup of a jaundiced patient is the pretest probability of mechanical obstruction. Ultrasound is the first-line modality to exclude biliary tract obstruction. When mechanical obstruction is present, additional imaging with CT or MRI can clarify etiology, define level of obstruction, stage disease, and guide intervention.