Computed tomography in the area of abdominal surgery

Recent progress of x-ray CT in the area of abdominal surgery was reviewed and the principles of first to fourth generation of x-ray scanner were summarized. Representative cases of the liver, pancreas, and digestive organs with cancers were described with figures. CT gave the important information of tumor size or nature, especially, in the case of resection. Dynamic scanning with the medium enhancement method after bolus injection was recommended. CT enables to follow the post-treatment state of the diseases after operation, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy. However, in any case, the combination of CT with other diagnostic methods may be necessary to obtain maximum information. (Nakanishi, T.)