ABSTRACT
Transvaginal sonography is important in evaluating for endometrial carcinoma because the endometrium can be accurately measured and well visualized. The normal postmenopausal endometrium is atrophic; the thickness of the endometrium in normal postmenopausal women diminishes with increasing time since the onset of menopause (8). The normal postmenopausal endometrium is seen as a thin, echogenic line of homogeneous texture. In women without vaginal bleeding (without additional risk factors for endometrial cancer-such as obesity, diabetes, and hypertension), a threshold of 11 mm has been suggested. This threshold has been shown to discriminate between women with a risk of endometrial cancer of 6.7% that warrants further diagnostic intervention (thickness >11 mm) and women with a very low risk of 0.002% (thickness ≤11 mm) in whom biopsy is not necessary (7). In the presence of other factors that increase the risk of endometrial cancer, such as obesity, unopposed estrogen or tamoxifen, and age above 70, a threshold of 8 mm is suggested in asymptomatic women (7).
