Computed Tomography and Magnetic Resonance Imaging Findings of Inflammatory Pseudotumors in the Abdomen and Pelvis: Current Concepts and Pictorial Review

The group of inflammatory pseudotumors (IPTs) encompasses a variety of rare neoplastic and nonneoplastic entities described to occur in almost every location in the body and whose clinical features and aggressive imaging findings (varying from infiltrative to mass-forming lesions), frequently mimic those of malignant tumors. The radiologic features of IPTs are variable and nonspecific, the imaging findings depending on the body location and involved organ. Abdominopelvic IPTs are rare and the purposes of this review, therefore, are to familiarize the radiologist with the wide spectrum of computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging findings of IPTs in various locations throughout the abdomen and pelvis, discussing the imaging features that allow consideration of IPTs in the differential diagnosis of soft-tissue masses within the pertinent clinical setting. Radiologists should be aware of this group of entities, as a preoperative histopathologic diagnosis upon radiological suspicion may help to differentiate IPTs from malignancy and to allow the most appropriate clinical work-up for these patients.