Pseudolesion in segment IV of the liver at CT during arterial portography: correlation with aberrant gastric venous drainage.

Abstract

To analyze the correlation between pseudolesions seen in segment IV of the liver and aberrant gastric venous drainage (AGVD). Twenty-two patients with a pseudolesion in the posterior edge of segment IV of the liver (group A) and 100 randomly selected patients without pseudolesions (group B) underwent computed tomography during arterial portography (CTAP) and hepatic arteriography. The frequency of the visualization of AGVD to segment IV was compared for groups A and B. AGVD was seen at arteriography in 18 of 22 patients in group A. None of the patients in group B had AGVD. The difference in the frequency of angiographically visible AGVD was statistically significant (chi 2 test, P < .01). AGVD is the main cause of pseudolesions in the posterior edge of segment IV of the liver.