Radiologic Evaluation Diagnostics Flashcards
ABCs of radiologic analysis
Alignment
Bone density
Cartilage spaces
Soft tissues
normal alignment to look at
articulation
spatial relationship
abnormal alignment to look at
fx
dislocation
subluxation
normal bone density should look like
sufficient contrast
bone & soft tissue separation
density within the bone
abnormal bone density to look for
loss of bone density
thinning/absence cortical margin
abnormal textural bone density
fluffy, thin, delicate, coarsened, smudged
abnormal local bone density changes
osteophytes, excessive sclerosis, reactive sclerosis
abnormal cartilage spaces
decreased spaces
increased sclerosis, erosion
abnormal soft tissues to look at
wasting, swelling of muscles
blurring, displaced fat pads & fat lines
joint capsules distension
observe reactions of periosteum
foreign bodies, gas bubbles radiolucent, calcifications radiopaque of miscellaneous soft tissue findings
errors of observation
related to search patterns
errors of interpretations
related to poor ability to link clinical presentation to radiologic findings
error reduction
interdisciplinary communication, especially with radiologist
monostatic/monoarticular
affects only 1 bone/joint
polystotic/polyarticular
affects multiple bones/joints
diffuse
affects nearly all bones or joints
osteoporosis on radiograph
30% reduction in bone mass for detection
what is DXA
dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry
what is the DXA good for
best precision with lowest radiation dose
T/L spine & non-dominant hip analyzed by computer
t-score for DXA
BMD & young matched healthy female compared
z-score for DXA
BMD & age matched healthy female compared
osteoporosis findings
cortical thinning
low bone mass
trabecular changes
fx
