ABSTRACT
The development of cross-sectional imaging studies such as sonography, computed tomography, and magnetic resonance imaging has dramatically changed the clinical workup of gallbladder disease. Each imaging modality is subject to several potential physical artifacts that are characteristic of that modality. Some, such as sound attenuation and acoustic enhancement, are useful. Other artifacts such as refraction and off-axis energy can mimic the presence of disease. Familiarity with the appearance and origins of artifacts affecting the normal gallbladder allows more accurate assessment, avoiding the potential for misdiagnosis. Imaging the gallbladder with an ultrasound transducer of finite beam width can cause partial volume or slice thickness artifact. When performing Doppler examination in the upper abdomen, any of the typical Doppler artifacts may be seen. A color flash artifact of the gallbladder has been described and is caused by transducer motion, which preferentially places a flash of color in the normally anechoic gallbladder lumen.
