Breast and scrotal sparganosis: sonographic findings and pathologic correlation.

Objective: Sparganosis is caused by the tapeworm larva of the geneus Spirometra. Because sparganosis usually manifests as a migrating subcutaneous mass, sonography can play an important role in its diagnosis.

Methods: In this series, we investigated 4 cases of subcutaneous sparganosis and focused on the sonographic findings. Three of the cases involved the breast, and the other involved the scrotum, as confirmed by surgery.

Results: The characteristics of subcutaneous sparganosis included a poorly defined hyperechoic lesion with internal serpiginous tubular structures, anechoic serpiginous tubular structures with a surrounding hyperechoic lesion, and an elongated hyperechoic mass with a hypoechoic nodular lesion in the central portion.

Conclusions: We suggest that a mass combined with a hypoechoic tubular structure should raise the suspicion of subcutaneous sparganosis.