METHOD OF SEARCHING FOR SIGNAL LYMPH NODES IN BREAST CANCER USING ULTRASONIC VISUALIZATION AND INTRADERMAL PARAREOLAR ADMINISTRATION OF SONOVUE ECHOCONTRAST DRUG Russian patent published in 2024 - IPC A61B8/08 A61K49/22 A61P43/00 

FIELD: medicine, ultrasound diagnostics.

SUBSTANCE: invention can be used to search for sentinel lymph nodes in breast cancer. To do this, an ultrasound examination of the affected mammary gland, tumour structure, and regional lymph flow zones is performed. Then, using an insulin syringe with a 26G needle, fractional injections of Sonovue contrast agent are made intradermally into the upper outer quadrant of the mammary gland at 3 points of 0.2 ml each. Then, within 30–60 seconds after injection, a superficial massage of the injection site is performed in the direction from the areola of the mammary gland to the axillary region. Then an ultrasound scan of the area of interest is performed in Contrast mode and a video loop is recorded on an ultrasound machine. The passage of the contrast agent through the lymphatic ducts and the filling of the axillary lymph nodes with contrast are assessed. If within 5–7 minutes the lymph node has accumulated contrast, its boundaries are detailed, and chyle vascularization has occurred; provided that contrasted tubular structures of the lymphatic ducts and formations in the axillary region are visualized in Contrast mode, the search result is assessed as positive.

EFFECT: reliable visualization and analysis of the state of the lymphatic ducts and axillary lymph nodes of the first order in the projection of regional zones of lymphatic drainage at the preoperative stage, in the absence of radiation exposure.

1 cl, 5 dwg, 2 ex