Ultrafast ultrasound localization microscopy for differential diagnosis of reactive hyperplasia and metastatic cervical lymph nodes: a pilot study

ULM enhances microvascular characterization of cervical LNs by revealing pathological angiogenesis patterns undetectable through standard ultrasonography. The synergistic combination of ULM with established US modalities achieves optimal diagnostic accuracy, providing a clinically actionable non-invasive approach for metastatic LNs identification. This paradigm may reduce unwarranted invasive procedures while improving pretreatment staging reliability.