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. 2020 Jan 30;2020:3583989. doi: 10.1155/2020/3583989

Table 1.

Index tests methodology.

Ultrasound Magnetic resonance imaging
Technical parameters Voluson E10 (GE medical Systems, Zipf, Austria) 3 T MR scanner with phased-array pelvic coil (Skyra, Siemens AG, Erlangen, Germany)
Standard gynecology setting Slice thickness 3-4 mm with interslice gaps 0.0 mm–1.0 mm

Preparation No bowel preparation or contrast gel sonography Fasting for 4 hours
Butylscopolamine 1 mg i.v.

Technical protocol (standardised for use in every participant) Transvaginal ultrasound (TV probe 7–9 MHz) Protocol-part 1 for pelvic DE location
(1) 2D T2W sequences in sagittal, axial and oblique plane
Transabdominal ultrasound (curvilinear TA probe 4–7 MHz) Protocol–part 2 for adnexal lesions
(2) Dixon technique 2D (T1W images incl. with and without fat suppression sequences)§
(3) DWI in axial plane∗∗
(4) Postcontrast 2D T1W with fat suppression (i.v. gadolinium)∗∗

Imaged area Pelvis TVS Whole pelvis from iliac crests to pubic bone
Upper urinary tract TAS T2-weighted sequences in coronal plane from symphysis up to kidneys

ESUR recommends 2D T2W sequences for pelvic DE [9]. §ESUR recommends 2D T1W sequences for endometriomas with Dixon technique as an alternative to confirm the presence of blood and to rule out a fat-containing lesion (such as dermoids) [9]. ∗∗ESUR recommended as optional sequences for ‘indeterminate' adnexal endometriosis (differential diagnosis of pelvic inflammatory disease, malignancy) [9]. 2D, two-dimensional; DE, deep endometriosis; DWI, diffusion-weighted imaging; ESUR, European Society of Urogenital Radiology guidelines [9]; MRI, magnetic resonance imaging; T1W, T1 weighted; T2W, T2 weighted; i.v. intravenous; TAS, transabdominal ultrasound; TVS, transvaginal ultrasound.