Necrotic cervical nodes: Usefulness of diffusion-weighted MR imaging in the differentiation of suppurative lymphadenitis from malignancy

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to assess the efficacy of diffusion-weighted (DW) MR imaging for the differentiation between suppurative lymphadenitis and malignancy in necrotic cervical lymph nodes.Materials and methodsFifteen patients with suppurative lymphadenitis, 40 with squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), eight with lymphoma, and six with thyroid cancer were accompanied by necrotic cervical nodes. All 69 patients underwent 1.5-T MR imaging including DW and 58 underwent gadolinium-enhanced MR imaging. Necrotic area-to-spinal cord signal intensity ratios (SIR) on T1-, T2- and DW images and apparent diffusion coefficients (ADCs) [10−3 mm2/s] were correlated with the pathologies.ResultsNineteen necrotic cervical nodes with suppurative lymphadenitis, 67 with SCC, 10 with lymphoma, and 12 with thyroid cancer were identified. SIR on DW images was higher in suppurative lymphadenitis (2.50 ± 1.21) than in malignancies (1.29 ± 0.67) (p < .01), and ADC value was lower in suppurative lymphadenitis (0.89 ± 0.21) than in malignancies (1.46 ± 0.46) (p < .01). SIR on T1-weighted images was higher in thyroid cancer (1.95 ± 0.53) than in suppurative lymphadenitis (0.87 ± 0.17), SCC (0.92 ± 0.13), and lymphoma (0.95 ± 0.09) (p < .01). No significant difference in SIR on T2-weighted images was found between suppurative lymphadenitis (1.46 ± 0.50) and malignancies (1.61 ± 0.56).ConclusionDW imaging with ADC measurements may play a supplementary role in the differentiation of necrotic cervical nodes between suppurative lymphadenitis and malignancy.