Diagnostic Value of Contrast‐Enhanced Ultrasound in Detecting Abdominal Metastases From Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors

Objective To assess the diagnostic performance of contrast‐enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) for detecting abdominal metastases in patients with gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs), with a comparison to conventional ultrasonography (US) and contrast‐enhanced computed tomography (CE‐CT). Methods This retrospective study enrolled 53 patients with pathologically confirmed abdominal metastases from gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs), who underwent US, CEUS, and CE‐CT examinations at our institution between January 2022 and January 2025. The diagnostic performance of CEUS was systematically evaluated and compared with US and CE‐CT according to pathological diagnostic criteria. Results CEUS showed significantly higher sensitivity than US (88.68% vs. 45.28%; p < 0.05). Notably, CEUS achieved comparable performance to CE‐CT (sensitivity: 88.68% vs. 94.34%; p > 0.05). No statistically significant differences were observed between CEUS and CE‐CT in lesion perfusion characteristics, including enhancement pattern ( p > 0.05), intensity ( p > 0.05), and homogeneity ( p > 0.05). Conclusions CEUS demonstrates superior diagnostic performance to US in detecting abdominal metastases from GISTs, with efficacy comparable to CE‐CT. Given its radiation‐free nature and procedural simplicity, CEUS represents a valuable imaging modality for the clinical assessment of GIST metastases.