Soap bubble appearance (differential diagnosis)

Soap bubble appearance describes a multi-loculated bubbly appearance of lesion or structure.

A soap bubble appearance of a bone lesion refers to:

• an expansile lytic lesion with internal trabeculations and preserved cortex, usually of benign nature 

• but may be used to describe more aggressive lesions

The differential includes:

• bone

  • aneurysmal bone cyst (ABC)

  • giant cell tumor (osteoclastoma)

  • adamantinoma of the jaw (ameloblastoma)

  • plasmacytoma

  • fibrous dysplasia

  • chordoma

• abdomen

  • meconium Ileus

• brain

  • dysembryoplastic neuroepithelial tumor (DNET)

  • multinodular and vacuolating neuronal tumor (MVNT)