What does increased cortical echogenicity mean?

When: Applied to the kidneys this means the outer area of the kidney is brighter on ultrasound than what is usually seen. This can be technical (as in not a reflection of disease). Increased echogenicity is also seen in a host of medical kidney diseases. So the importance of the finding has to be correlated by your doctor.

Kidney appearance: Renal cortex has a typical appearance on ultrasound. It is normally less echo dense than the nearby liver. Increased renal cortex echogenicity can be seen with renal disease , but does not mean so with certainty. It can be seen in otherwise normal functioning kidneys. A radiologist will usually comment on it. The referring physician has to correlate this with clinical and lab findings.