Ultrasound assisted diagnosis of the painful calf

The efficiency of ultrasound usage in the diagnosis of the painful calf has been discussed in previous reports. We report our experience with the use of this modality as an accurate diagnostic tool for calf pain in young adults. Twenty-nine patients (16 males, 13 females) underwent dynamic ultrasonographic examination due to calf pain. Nine patients had tears of the gastrocnemius medial head, 2 had an intramuscular haematoma, 2 had distal fibula fractures, 3 had peroneal muscle herniation and 2 had herniation of the gastrocnemius medial head. One patient had cellulitis, one polymyositis and one dermatomyositis. Two patients had myositis ossificans, 2 patients had haemangiomas, and 4 patients had lipomas. All the diagnoses were confirmed by other imaging modalities and/or histological evaluation. We found ultrasound, as a very helpful tool to achieve a correct diagnosis of the painful calf.