This is the second, updated and extended edition of a well-received book that offers a comprehensive overview of ultrasonographic imaging of acute and chronic gastrointestinal diseases, including acute abdomen, appendicitis, diverticulitis, inflammatory bowel diseases, neoplasms and masses, infections, malabsorption syndromes, and rare conditions. The value of ultrasound in each disorder is clearly explained and illustrated, and limitations identified. Information is also provided on recent technical developments and ultrasound applications that are likely to become of increasing importance, such as functional and 3D ultrasound, contrast agents and intraoperative ultrasound, elastography, and transperineal ultrasound. The authors are all distinguished experts in the topics they address. Ultrasound of the Gastrointestinal Tract will be a helpful guide in daily practice not only for radiologists but also for gastroenterologists, abdominal surgeons, pediatricians, and oncologists.

Giovanni Maconi gained his MD cum laude from the University of Pavia in 1989 and obtained a Postgraduate Degree in Gastroenterology cum laude from the Catholic University of Rome in 1993. He subsequently worked as a Registrar, Senior Registrar and Research Fellow in the Gastrointestinal Unit of the 'Luigi Sacco' University Hospital, Milan. Since 2006 he has been Associate Professor of Gastroenterology at that hospital. Dr. Maconi is a member of the editorial boards for the Scandinavian Journal of Gastroenterology, Digestive and Liver Disease, World Journal of Gastroenterology, and Journal of Ultrasound. He is a referee for numerous other journals and has also acted as a reviewer for Broad Medical Research Program (Los Angeles, USA) and the Wellcome Trust (London, UK). He has authored more than 100 papers in peer-reviewed journals, most of which have related to ultrasound and gastroenterology.