Ill-defined
Read Your Scan Editorial Team·Last updated
Written from published radiology references and reviewed for plain language. Not written or signed by a physician, and not a diagnosis. How we write these pages →
In plain language
Without a clear edge — the finding blurs into whatever is next to it. It is a reason for a radiologist to look more carefully, though inflammation and swelling produce fuzzy borders too.
Where you’ll see this
The findings, describing a mass, an opacity or an area of abnormal signal.
Your report may word it “Poorly defined”, “Indistinct” or “Poorly marginated”. These mean the same thing.
Questions worth asking your doctor
- In plain terms, how big or how serious is what you are describing?
- Does this description point to one likely cause, or several?
- Does anything here explain the symptoms I came in with?
How a finding is described
See this word on your own scan
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Read Your Scan is informational only — not a medical diagnosis, and not a substitute for a licensed radiologist or your doctor. If you have urgent symptoms, seek care.