Vascularity describes the extent and pattern of blood vessel supply within a tissue, organ, or lesion. On ultrasound, vascularity is evaluated using color Doppler (which shows flow direction and velocity as a color overlay) and power Doppler (which shows the amplitude of flow signal with greater sensitivity to slow flow). Assessing the vascularity of a mass is an important part of its sonographic characterization. Benign lesions tend to have organized peripheral blood flow or minimal vascularity, while malignant tumors often demonstrate increased, irregular internal vascularity with chaotic flow patterns. Vascularity assessment is used in evaluating thyroid nodules, breast masses, ovarian masses, liver lesions, testicular masses, and many other clinical contexts. Hypervascularity (increased blood flow) can also indicate inflammation or infection.
Sonography Term