Radiology of Trauma Flashcards

1
Q

What does imaging constitute in terms of head trauma?

A

Important part in modern day practice

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

What has a lot of guidelines been looking at?

A

Indication for imaging

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

When is there enhanced role for CT?

A

After head injury

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

What is enhanced role for CT after head injury advocated by?

A
  1. Neurosurgeons in 1990 and 1998, 1999 guidelines from RCSEng
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

Historically, what is the only imaging that are performed in form of head trauma?

A

Skull radiographs
Extremely unreliable
Variable reliability

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

What is the reliability of head trauma?

A

ER clinicians miss 13-23%

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

What does skull radiographs have?

A

Low sensitivity

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

What is CT sensitivities and specifities 100% for?

A

Detecting and locating a surgically significant focal intracranial lesion

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

What is the effect of Admissions?

A
  1. Most patients would be admitted for observations
  2. Specialists observations are required
  3. Only 1-3% develop life-threatening intracranial pathology
  4. Remainder home after 48 hours observation
  5. Significant resource burden on the NHS
  6. Quality of observations
  7. Limited emergency neurosurgical beds in the UK
  8. Secondary deterioration delayed with routine neurological observations
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

What is the morbidity of Head trauma?

A
  1. Mismanage head injury
  2. High level of disability following minor/mild head injury
  3. Far exceeds capacity of UK neuro-rehabilitation services
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

What are the imaging modalities for head trauma?

A

SXR limited usefulness:

  • Calvarial fractures
  • Penetrating injuries
  • Radiopaque foreign bodies
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

What is the Computed Tomography (CT)?

A
  1. Main: imaging head trauma in acute setting
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

What is CT sensitive for?

A

Mass effect (brain shift)
Ventricular size
Bone Injuries
Acute haemmorhage

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

What is the limitations for CT including insensitivity in detecting?

A
  • Small and non-haemorrhagic lesions (e.g. contusion)
  • DAI
  • Detecting increased ICP or cerebral oedema
  • Early demonstration of HIE
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

What is MRI good for?

A

Looking at tissue discrimination therefore finer points of tissue injury

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

What does MRI look at?

A

Specific sequences to look at by-product of haemorrhage [determining the extent of damage]

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

What is DWI used for?

A

Impeding infarction or established infarction

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

What is MRI sensitive for?

A

Subacute and chronic brain injuries

-Hemosiderin-sensitive T2W GRE + SWI sequences

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

What does DWI improve?

A

Detection of acute infarction

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

What is FLAIR imaging sensitive for?

A

Subarachnoid haemorrhage and lesions bordered by CSF

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

What is required for non-haemorrhagic primary lesions (contusions) or secondary effects (oedema, HIE, DAI)?

A

Superior contrast resolution

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

What is MRI hindered by?

A
  1. Limited availability in acute trauma setting
  2. Long Imaging times - sensitivity to patient motion
  3. Relative insensitivity to subarachnoid haemorrhage
  4. Medical devices incompatability unless MRI-specific
  5. Risk of in-dwelling devices or forgein bodies
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q

What are examples of foreign bodies?

A
  1. Cardiac pacemaker

2. Cerebral aneurysm clip

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

What is angiography?

A

Look at vessels in the brain, different various form

25
Q

When do you do angiogram?

A

High index of suspicion for vascular injury and treat by stemming the floor of haemorrhage or by repairing it

26
Q

What should be used in the case of penetrating trauma, skull base fractures or trauma to the neck there is a distinct possibility of vascular injury?

A
  1. CT
  2. MR angiography
    sequences
27
Q

What is CT/MR good for?

A

Primary vascular injuries

blood injuries by arterial dissection

28
Q

What is vascular injuries typically seen in?

A
  1. Penetrating trauma
  2. Base skull fracture
  3. Trauma to the neck
29
Q

What is less invasive screening tools for traumatic vascular lesions?

A
  1. CTA

2. MRA

30
Q

What remains the gold standard for dissection depiction?

A

Angiography

31
Q

What are other imaging modalities suggested for assessment of cognitive and neuro-psychologic disturbances and reocvery?

A
  1. PET
  2. SPECT
  3. Xenon-enhanced CT
  4. Functional MRI
32
Q

What are the investigated criteria?

A
  1. GCS
  2. Vomitting and headache
  3. Amnesia
  4. Ethanol or Drug intoxication
  5. Age
  6. Anticoagulation or coagulopathies
33
Q

Amnesia

A
  • Common after mild head injury
  • Longer episodes, greater chance of haemorrhage
  • SPECT study/- amnesia >33min- bilateral cerebral hypoperfusion
34
Q

What did up to 8% of alcohol intoxicated patients have?>

A

Intracerebral injury

35
Q

What are the guidelines for Imaging?

A
  • National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (nice) – January 2014 (updated) CG176
  • American College of Radiology (ACR) APPROPRIATENESS Criteria 2007
  • American Association of Neurological Surgeons 2001
  • Canadian CT head rule study 2001
  • New Orleans Criteria 2000
36
Q

What are examples of primary neuronal injury?

A
  1. Cortical contusion
  2. Diffuse Axonal Injury (DAI)
  3. Primary brain stem injury
37
Q

What are examples of primary haemorrhage?

A
  1. Subarachnoid Haemorrhage
  2. Subdural haematomas (SDH)
  3. Extra dural Haematomas (EDH)
  4. Intracerebral Haematomas
38
Q

What is cortical contusion?

A
  1. Consequence of direct trauma against the skull

2. Acceleration/Deceleration

39
Q

What is Diffuse Axonal Injury/

A
  • Non-linear accelerator via accelerative force that is applied to the brain
  • There is differential momentum of brain tissue
  • Grey and white matter move at different rates in different directions and cause shearing force and vascular injury
  • Happens throughout the brain with different densities of tissues
40
Q

What is Subarachnoid Haemorrhage?

A
  1. Intracranial arterial rupture
  2. Most common in aneurysm
  3. Rupturing of intracranial arteries that can happen because of shear and trauma
41
Q

What is Subdural Haemorrhage?

A
  1. Bridging veins within subdural space
  2. Causes mass effect
  3. Slower in neurology onset
42
Q

What is Intraventricular Haemorrhage?

A
  1. Consequence of severe diffuse shear injury
43
Q

What is Extra-dural haemorrhage?

A
  1. Arterial bleed from a dural arterial supply
  2. Tend to have a slightly different configuration
  3. Associated with fractures
44
Q

What is Parenchymal Haemorrhage?

A
  • Secondary vascular type injury
  • Injuries to the vessel that supply the brain
  • Cause a little focus of haemorrhage
  • Larger and more discrete haemorrhage -frontal and directional impact
45
Q

What is vascular injuries?

A
  1. Traumatic arterial and venous injuries more prevalent after head trauma than generally believed
46
Q

What are examples of vascular injuries?

A
  1. Dissections
  2. Laceration
  3. Occlusion
  4. Pseudoaneurysms
  5. Ateriovenous fistulas
47
Q

What is vascular injuries caused by?

A

Basal skull fractures

48
Q

When is surgery for fractures done?

A
  • Depressed skull more than full thickness of the skull
  • Open fractures that give rise to pneumocephalus
  • Relieve or prevent CSF leakage, infection, haemorrhage or vascular compromise
  • SXR, CT imaging modality of choice
  • CT, contrast CT or radionuclide cisternography used for detecting sites of CSF leaks
  • Nuclear medicine study: put a radionuclide into the CSF space and watch it seep out
49
Q

What do foreign bodies cause?

A

Several mechanisms depending on size and velocity:

  1. Direct laceration
  2. Shock-wave transmission
  3. Cavitation
50
Q

What does imaging serve to do?

A

Detect, localise, aid removal and assess extent of damage

51
Q

When is secondary injury most commonly encountered?

A
  1. Territorial arterial infarction
  2. Prolonged transtentorial and subfalcine herniations
  3. Direct vascular laceration, thrombosis and embolism
52
Q

What is chronic sequelae of head injury characterised by?

A
  • Parenchymal atrophy
  • Residual haemoglobin degradation products
  • Wallerian-type axonal degeneration
  • Demyelination
  • Cavitation
  • Microglial scarring
53
Q

What is guidance for injury?

A
  • Anterior 2/3 vertebral body, disc and the ALL
  • Posterior 1/3 vertebral body, disc and PLL
  • Pedicles, transverse processes, laminae, articular facets and spinous processes
  • If 2 columns disrupted = unstable injury
  • Nice Guidelines NG41 – assessment of clinical severity by the Canadian C-spine rule
54
Q

What is Spine multi-modal Imaging?

A
  • Children (<16):
  • MRI if strong suspicion of spinal cord or column injury
  • X-ray if do not fulfil the criteria for MRI
  • Adults:
  • CT if indicated by Canadian C-spine rule or neurology
  • CT if strong suspicion of T or L spine injury
  • X-rays otherwise
  • MRI where CT cannot explain neurology
55
Q

What is the mechanism of Injury (Cervical)?

A
  1. Hyperflexion
  2. Hyperextension
  3. Axial compression
56
Q

What are the upper cervical spine fractures?

A
  • Complex flexion/extension
  • Atlanto-Occipital Dislocation
  • Odontoid Peg Fractures
  • Extension
  • Hangman’s fracture
  • Vertical compression
  • Jefferson’s fracture
57
Q

What is the Lower Cervical Spine Fractures?

A
•	Flexion
•	Flexion teardrop fracture
•	Wedge compression fracture
•	Clay shoveler’s fracture
•	Bilateral facet joint dislocation
•	Flexion rotation
-	Unilateral facet joint dislocation
•	Vertical compression
-	Burst fracture
58
Q

What is soft tissue spinal injuries ?

A
  • Anterior Subluxation
  • Ligamentous injuries
  • Cord contusion
  • Brachial plexus injuries
  • Vertebral arteries
59
Q

What is Thoracolumbar spine fractures?

A
  • Wedge compression Fractures
  • Burst Fractures
  • Chance Fractures
  • Spondylolisthesis
  • Sponylolysis