Abdominal Imaging Flashcards
Why would you order a KUB xray?
bowel distension, urinary tract stone/stent, foreign body, tube placement
When is a KUB xray not useful?
can’t be used to rule out free intra-peritoneal gas or to detect air-fluid levels
What are the three views seen in an acute abdominal series?
Upright PA chest, upright abd xray, flat plate abdomen
Why would you order an AAS?
Fast, low cost, low radiation
Looks for lung pathology, bowel distention, air fluid levels, and free air
very helpful for bowel obstruction, ileus, perforated viscus, or foreign bodies… can’t exclude any of these tho. only confirm
What are you looking for in an erect chest xray?
free air, pneumonia at bases, pleural effusions
What should you look for in an abdominal flat plate xray?
gas in rectum, sigmoid, ascending and descending colon, and calcifications
What should you look for in an upright abd (erect) xray?
look for free air, bowel distention, air-fluid levels, gas pattern, soft tissue masses
