CT Head Flashcards
According to nice guidelines - within how many hours should a patient on anticoagulation who had a head injuries have a head CT?
8 hours
When was the FAST campaign launched?
2009 by PHE
What region do we scan during a head CT?
Base of skull to vertex
Which baseline do we use to position for a head CT?
Radiographic baseline
Which plane do we acquire head CT in?
What is the standard brain slice thickness?
Axial at 5mm slice thickness
What are the reconstructions during a CT head?
1.25 mm slices - soft tissue window
0.625 mm slices - Bone window
What is high density described as?
How does it appear on CT?
Hyperdense show bright
What is low density described as and how does it appear on CT?
Hypodense shows dark
what is the same density described as?
Isodense
What is infarction in the brain?
- sudden vascular insufficiency
- the development of ischaemia depends on the amount and duration of blood flow loss to the brain
- any cause of blood flow loss to the brain parenchyma can cause ischaemia
- can be transient or permanent
What are some of the causes of infarction?
- Thrombus
- Embolus - blood, air, fat
- Trauma - dissection
- Cardio-respiratory arrest
What are the clinical presentation of brain Infarction?
~ sudden onset
~ Painless
~ neurological deficits
~ may/ or not affect consciousness level
What are clinical factors that affect the risk of stroke?
AF
previous TIAs
Trauma
Side of neurological deficits
What is segmental infarction?
Occlusion of large vessels
What is a lacunar infarction?
Occlusion of small end vessels
What is a cortical infarction?
Focal areas affecting the cortex
What is a venous infarction?
Uncommon and most often associated with VST
What is involved in a multiple territory infarctions?
Infection, trauma, cardiac embolism etc
What are watershed infarctions?
AKA border zone infarct - occur at the border between cerebral vascular territories
What is a secondary infarction?
Vasospasm from haemorrhage
What key points does a request have to say for a radiographer to be able to vet the head CT?
? Stroke
Which side is affected
Onset time of symptoms