[The value of sonography in the differential diagnosis of soft tissue tumors].

A total of 379 patients with soft tissue swellings of unclear aetiology underwent a prospective examination with a high-resolution linear scanner during an interdisciplinary study. We diagnosed 112 true soft tissue tumours, 42 peripheric soft tissue metastases, 34 lymph node metastases, 106 tumour-simulating diseases, 56 inflammatory diseases, and 29 vascular alterations. Eighty-eight per cent of the cases were given the correct differential diagnostic classification by means of sonography. Assessment of malignancy ist not possible by means of sonography.