B&H Flashcards
How to evaluate proper CXR technique?
PRIM
- penetration
- rotation
- inspiration
- motion
Utility of lateral decubitus CXR
- detect small pleural effusion on ispilateral side (5ml)
- detect small PTX on contralateral side (15ml)
- detect the free-flowing nature of pleural effusions
- detect air-trapping in check valve bronchial obstruction in a patient who is unable to cooperate for inspiratory/expiratory CXR
Normal tracheal caliber
- 25 mm in men
- 21 mm in women
- coronal : sagittal = 0.6 : 1.0
- if ratio < 0.6, then saber sheath trachea
- COPD
Maximal thickness of right paratracheal strip and posterior tracheoesophageal stripe?
- right paratracheal stripe < 4mm
- posterior tracheoesophageal stripe < 5mm
Bronchioles
terminal bronchioles –>
respiratory bronchioles –>
alveolar ducts and alveolar sacs
Pulmonary alveolar epithelial cellls
(pneumocytes)
- Type 1 pnemocytes
- 95%
- invisible by light microscope
- incapable of mitosis/repair
- Type 2 pneumocytes
- 5%
- visible by microscpe
- capable of mitosis, produces type 1 pneumocytes
- produces surfactant
Where does the minor fissure projects on a frontal PA CXR?
level of the right 4th rib
Azygos fissure
- due to incomplete migration of the azygos vein to its normal position at the right tracheobronchial angle
- 4 layers of pleura
- 2 visceral
- 2 parietal
Bronchial artery
- Right - 1 - posteriorly from aorta
- Left - 2 - anteriorly from aorta
- 2/3 - drains into the pulmonary venous system via the bronchial veins - small right to left shunt
- 1/3 - drains in to the azygos and hemiazygos systems
Approach to CXR
- Soft tissues
- Bones
- Mediastinum
- Lungs
Convexity to the azygoesophageal recess
- superior third - subcrinal lymph node or mass
- middle third - confluence of right pulmonary veins or the right border of the left atrium
- left atrial dilatation produces double density interface
- inferior third - sliding hiatal hernia
Pectus excavatum
- leftward cardiac displacement
- loss of the interface betwen right heart border and medial right middle lobe
- not to be confused with RML pneumonia
Aortic nipple
left superior intercostal vein
Heart borders on CXR
Left atrial appendage
- should be concave
- straightening or convexity is seen in patients with rheumatic mitral valve disease and left atrial enlargement
Good inspiration
10th posterior rib
6th anterior rib
Pericardium
- thin line represents the pericardial layers between the epicardial and pericardial fat
- nodularity or >2mm thick is abnormal
Diaphragmatic opening
- aortic hiatus
- esophageal hiatus
- IVC hiatus
- foramen of Morgagni
- foramen of Bochdalek
Aortic hiatus
- aorta
- thoracic duct
- azygos and hemiazygos veins
Esophageal Hiatus
- esophagus
- vagus nerve
Airspace communications
- pores of Kohn - intralveolar channels
- canals of Lambert - bridging terminal bronchioles with alveoli
Bat wing airspace opacities
- pulmonary edema
- pulmonary hemorrhage
Ventilated pts recieving 100% O2 can have completely collapsed lung in a few minutes
- bronchogenic carcinoma/endobronchial lesion
- endotracheal tube malposition
- mucus plugging
- foreign bodies
Pure O2 is absorbed fast by the lungs
Only direct radiographic sign of lobar atelectasis
Dispacement of an interlobar fissure
Indirect signs of lobar atelectasis
- increased density of the atelectic lung
- bronchovascular crowding
- ipsilateral diaphgragm elevation
- ipsilateral tracheal/mediastinal shift
- hilar elevation in upper lobe atelectasis
- hilar depression in lower lobe atelectasis
- compensatory hyperinflation of other lobes
- shifting granuloma - towards the collapsed side
- ipsilateral small hemithorax - close proximity of the ribs - only if chronic atelectasis
Rounded atelectasis
- pleural disease/thickening
- curvilinear bronchovascular bundle/comet tail
- acute angle with the pleura
- enhances following IV contrast
LUL collapse/atelectasis
- best seen in lateral projection
- lateral - major fissure shifts anteriorly and marginating a long narrow band of increased opacity paralleling the anterior chest wall - the collapsed LUL
- frontal - a veil of increased opacity over the left upper hemithorax
- Luftsichel sign - air sickel sign - overinflated superior segment of LLL interposed b/t aortic arch and the collasped LUL
Lobar atelectasis
vs
Lobar pneumonia
- atelectasis - volume loss; no airbronchogram - no air is the cause of the collapse
- consolidation - volume preserved - with pus and exudate; airbronchogram - consolidation orginates from the alveolar space
Mucoid impaction
aka
Bronchocele
- non-obstructive bronchiectasis
- cystic fibrosis
- ABPA
- obstructive bronchiectasis
- endobronchial tumor
- bronchial atresia
Pneumatocele
- thin-walled, gas-containing structures representing distended airspaces distal to a check-valve obstruction of a bronchus or bronchiole
- common - Staph aureus, trauma
- generally resolve in 4 - 6 mons
Focal lucent pulmonary lesions
- cavity - necrosis; communicating with airway
- > 1mm thick
- abscess, neoplasm
- bulla
- < 1mm thick
- > 1cm in diameter
- bleb
- < 1cm in diameter
- in visceral pleural surface, apical
- air cyst
- intraparenchymal gas collection
- > 1mm thick
- pneumatocele
- thin-walled cystic lesion
- staph infection or post-traumatic
- self-resolving
Non-pulmonary causes of
unilateral pulmonary hyperlucency
- pt rotation - increased density over the lung rotated away from the cassette
- Poland syndrome - congenital absence of pectoralis muscle
- mastectomy
Poland Syndrome
True/pulmonary
unilateral hyperlucent lung
- primary vascular abnormality
- pulmonary artery hypoplasia
- lobar resection
- pulmonary arterial obstruction
- shuting of blood away from abnormal lung
- check-valve effect from endobronchial mass/foreign body
- Swyer-James syndome
Swyer-James syndrome
- Adenoviral infection during infancy
- asymmetric bronchiolitis obliterans –> secondary decreased vascularity –> collateral air drift and airtrapping
- Unilateral hyperlucent lung
- Small or normal-sized hemithorax
- Overinflation of contralateral lung
- Diminutive pulmonary hilum
- Decreased peripheral pulmonary arteries
- Mediastinal shift toward the hyperlucent thorax
DDx of unilateral hyperlucent thorax
- technical
- rotation
- chest wall
- mastectomy
- Poland syndrome
- vasculature
- pulmonary artery hypoplasia/stenosis
- pulmonary embolism
- pleural disease
- anterior ptx
- airways
- emphysema
- large bulla
- endobronchial obstruction/FB
- congenital lobar emphysema
- post-infectious bronchiolitis obliterans - Swyer-James syndrome
Presence of calcification within an untreated mediastinal mass virtually excludes what?
Lymphoma
Pneumomediastinum
- most common finding is air outlining the left heart border
- contnous diaphgram sign
Upper limits of interlobar pulmonary artery
- men 17mm
- women 15mm
Classification of thymic tumors
- benign - thymoma
- invasive
- non-invasive (encapsulated)
- malignant - thymic carcinoma
Typical age of thymoma
45-50 years old
What is thymoma associated with
Myasthenia gravis
and other autoimmune dz
- pure red cell aplasia
- graves disease
- sjogren’s syndrome
Low grade
vs
high grade
thymomas
High grade thymomas
- larger
- irregular margins
- heterogenous enhancement
- necrosis
- calcification
- mediastinal nodal metastases
- drop metastasis to the dependent portions of the pleural space*
DDx of thymic masses
- thymoma - invasive vs noninvasive
- thymic carcinoma
- thymic cyst
- thymolipoma
- thymic hyperplasia
- thymic neuroendocrine tumors
- thymic lymphoma
Thymic cyst
- Congenital
- unilocular
- rare
- Acquired
- multilocular
- AIDS, post-radiation/sx, Sjogren syndrome, MG, aplastic anemia
- may mimic cystic degeneration of thymoma
Thymolipoma
- pliable nature
- envelopes the heart and diaphgram
- curable if resected
Thymic neuroendocrine tumor
aka
Thymic carcinoid
- most common histology - thymic carcinoid
- carcinoid -> atypical caricnoid -> small cell
- 40% - cushing syndrome due to ectopic ADTH secretion
- can’t be distinguished from thymoma on CT
Thymic hyperplasia
- most common in children
- rebound effect in response to
- an antecedent stress
- discontinuation of chemoRx
- treatment of hypercortisolism
Thymic lymphoma
- most ocmmonly involved in nodular sclerosing subtype of Hodgkins dz
- presence of other lymphadenopathy suggest the Dx
Hodgkin disease
vs
NHL
- Hodgkin disease
- almost always involves mediastinal/hilar nodes
- contiguous nodal spread
- localized - radiation
- widespread - chemo Rx
- NHL
- only involves one mediastinal/nodal group
- multifocal disorder; unpredictable
- Calcification in untreated lymphoma is extremely uncommon
- Lung parenchymal involvement is due to direct extranodal extension from hilar nodes along the bronchovascular lymphatics
Solid teratoma
vs
cystic teratoma
solid teratoma
- usually malignant
- exclusively in male
What does mediastinal lymphadenopathy look like
for patients with lymphoma?
bilateral LAD
but asymmetric
Isolated posterior mediastinal LAD
Usually only seen in patients with NHL
Sarcoidosis
vs
Lymphoma and metastases
- sarcoidosis - bilateral and symmetric;
- enlarged lymph nodes do NOT coalesce
- lymphoma/mets - bilateral but asymmetric
- intranodal tumor extends through the nodal capsule to form conglomerate enlarged nodal masses
Castleman disease
Angiofollicular lymph node hyperplasia
aka
Castleman disease
- intense enhancement
Foregut cysts
- bronchogenic cyst
- enteric cyst
- complications
- secondary infection
- rapid enlargement due to hemorrhage
- CT appearance
- well-defined, thin-walled mass
- fluid density 0-10 HU
- does not enhance
- > 40 HU due to mucoid material, milk of calcium, blood
Pericardial cyst
- right anterior cardiophrenic angle
- CT - smooth, sharply marginated, low-attenuation mass
- MR or US - subxyphoid approach - simple cyst
Lymph nodes with central calcification
- TB
- Fungal
Lymph nodes with peripheral calcification
aka
eggshell calcification
- sarcoidosis
- silicosis/CWP
Lymph nodes that are hypervascular
intensely enhancing
- carconoid tumor/small cell carcinoma
- Kaposi sarcoma
- metastases
- RCC
- thyroid
- Castlman disease
Lymph nodes that are centrally necrotic
- mycobacteria/TB
- fungus
- metastases
- squamous cell carcinoma
- seminoma
- lymphoma
DDx for anterior mediastinal mass
- thymic masses
- thyroid masses
- germ cell neoplasms
- lymphoma/lymph nodes
- ectopic parathyroid mass
- mesenchymal tumor
- lipoma
- hemangioma
- leiomyoma
- liposarcoma
- angiosarcoma
DDx of middle medistinal mass
- lymph node masses
- malignancy
- infection
- idiopathic - sarcoidosis/Castleman
- foregut or mesothelial cysts
- bronchogenic cyst
- pericardial cyst
- foregut duplication cyst
- tracheal and central bronchial lesions
- diaphragmatic hernias
- Morgagni hernia
- traumatic diaphragmatic hernia
- vascular lesions
- arterial
- venous