Exam 1: xrays Flashcards
Would bones be more present with overexposure or underexposure?
overexposure
S4
What type of body habitus results in underexposed x-rays?
Obesity
S4
With overexposure, a chest x-ray will appear too ______.
dark
* the bones are very white but small nodules and fine structures in the lung aren’t seen
S4
With underexposure, a chest x-ray will appear too ____.
bright
* this is hard to interpret
* small pulmonary blood vessles appear prominent and could lead you to think there are infultrations
S4
Major difference b/w male and female cxr
- caused by breast tissue: breast tissue absorbes some xr beam
- this can cause underexposure of the tissues in the path
- not a problem if the breasts are above the hemidiaphragms
S4
Pt position with PA and AP xr views
PA: (usually ambulatory pts) the xr tube is behind the pt and the beam passes from the pts back and exits the front of the chest
AP: if laying down, xr tube passes antrior to posteior
AP makes the heart look a little larger because the beam spreads out a little more
*But PA (upwright) helps with lung expension and pulm. vessels - i.e. a hemothorax will become gravity dependent (run down)
S5
What mnemonic should guide x-ray assessment?
Are There Many Lung Lesions?
Abdomen
Thorax
Mediastinum
Lung
Laterality
S7
Laterally= bilateral lung
- In the thorax assessment, sharp ____ angles will have ____ fill in the gaps if there’s a ____
- There is a ____ if the air goes ____ the angles instead of filling in the gaps.
- In the thorax assessment, sharp costophrenic angles will have blood fill in the gaps if there’s a hemothorax
- There is a pneumothorax if the air goes around the angles instead of filling in the gaps.
S13
In the mediastinum assessment, what tells you there is cardiomegaly?
Cardiac silhouette > than 1/2 to 2/3 greater than normal
S17
From K: I believe this should say 1/2-2/3rds of the space in thorax
What is the systematic order of approach for chest x-ray assessment?
- Bony framework
- Soft tissues
- Lung fields and Hila
- Diaphragm and pleural spaces
- Mediastinum & heart
- Abdomen and neck
Beautiful Sky, Lets Hike Down Mountain Above
S21
What structures make of the pulmonary Hila?
Pulmonary arteries & veins
* the hila is the shadow of the pulm artery and vein adjacent to the heart shadow
S24
Abnormalities in lung fields are marked by excessive ____ and ____.
radiolucency and radiopacity (or opacified areas)
S24
What do you look for with bony framework?
Ribs
Sternum - sometimes hard to see
Spine
Shoulder girdle
Clavicles
*Anterior view sometimes gets lost in mediasteinum
S22
What do you look for with soft tissues?
Breast shadows be mindful of breasts obscuring the costophrenic angles
Supraclavicular areas
Axillae - more pneumothorax accumulation
Tissues along side of breasts
S23
What do you look for with Lung fields?
Hilum (base/root of lung – close to heart)
Lungs: Linear and fine nodular shadows of pulmonary vessels
Blood vessels
40% obscured by other tissue
S24
What do you look at with the diaphragm and pleral surfaces?
Diaphragm (liver sits higher on the R so that dome is higher)
Dome-shaped
Costophrenic angles
Normal pleura is not visible on the cxr unless two layers come together to form interlobar fissures
S25
What do you look at with the mediastinum and heart (Right side)?
Heart size on PA
Right side: Inferior vena cava, Right atrium, Ascending aorta, Superior vena cava
biggest takaways are to look for the aortic knob and the size of the cardiac silhouette
S26
What do you look at with the mediastinum and heart (Left side)?
Left side: Left ventricle, Left atrium, Pulmonary artery, Aortic arch, Subclavian artery and vein
Order from bottom to top: LV, LA, pulm art, aortic arch and subclav artery and vein
S27
What do you look at with the abd and neck?
Abdomen: Gastric bubble, Air under diaphragm
Neck: Soft tissue mass, Air bronchogram
S28
What structure is indicated by 1 on the figure below?
Superior Vena Cava
S26
What structure is indicated by 2 on the figure below?
Inferior Vena Cava
S26
What structure is indicated by 3 on the figure below?
Right atrium
S26
What structure is indicated by 4 on the figure below?
Right ventricle
S26
What structure is indicated by 5 on the figure below?
Left ventricle
S26
What structure is indicated by 6 on the figure below?
Ascending Aorta and Aortic Arch
S26
What structure is indicated by 7 on the figure below?
Pulmonary vasculature
S26
What would the results be for a poor inspiration on a chest x-ray?
- High diaphragm
- Crowding of lung markings
S30
What would be the result of over or under penetration?
- Can obliterate or exaggerate important findings
- A proper PA cxr, you can make out the thoracic vertabrae
S30