CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Indian J Radiol Imaging 2014; 24(02): 182-191
DOI: 10.4103/0971-3026.134413
Musculoskeletal Radiology

Cysts and cystic-appearing lesions of the knee: A pictorial essay

Nicholas A Telischak
Department of Radiology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, 330 Brookline Avenue, Boston MA 02215, USA
,
Jim S Wu
Department of Radiology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, 330 Brookline Avenue, Boston MA 02215, USA
,
Ronald L Eisenberg
Department of Radiology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, 330 Brookline Avenue, Boston MA 02215, USA
› Author Affiliations

Abstract

Cysts and cystic-appearing lesions around the knee are common and can be divided into true cysts (synovial cysts, bursae, ganglia, and meniscal cysts) and lesions that mimic cysts (hematomas, seromas, abscesses, vascular lesions, and neoplasms). The specific anatomic location of the cystic lesion often permits the correct diagnosis. In difficult cases, identifying a cystic mass in an atypical location and/or visualizing internal solid contrast enhancement on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) should raise concern for a neoplasm and the need for further evaluation and intervention.



Publication History

Article published online:
02 August 2021

© 2014. Indian Radiological Association. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial-License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

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