Usefulness of direct coronal CT in the diagnosis of urinary bladder tumor.

Direct coronal CT was performed on 6 cases of urinary bladder tumor in which conventional axial transverse CT failed to depict the relationship between the lesion and bladder wall. GE CT/T 8800 was used, and the bladder was scanned with patients crouched on the table opposite the gantry. The relationship between the tumor and bladder wall as well as the surrounding organs was visualized in 5 of 6 cases examined. THe CT diagnosis and histological findings coincided in 4 of these 5. Direct coronal CT was useful for diagnostic determination of clinical stage for tumors occurring in the apical or basal region of the urinary bladder.