Thoracic Radiology Flashcards
Signs of left sided cardiomegaly: left lateral
1) flattened caudodorsal margin
2) wide and tall
3) dorsal elevation of trachea
Signs of left sided cardiomegaly: DV
1) left atrial enlargement at 6:00
2) left auricle enlargement at 2-3:00
Signs of right sided cardiomegaly: left lateral
1) increased sternal contact
2) increased amount of heart cranial to carina (more than 1/2)
3) rounded cranial margin
Signs of right-sided cardiomegaly: DV
1) reverse D
2) enlargement of MPA
3) enlargement of right atria
veins are located…
ventrally and centrally
what is a sign of artery enlargement and what does this indicate
tortuosity; indicates pulmonary hypertension
Signs of feline cardiomegaly: left lateral
1) indented caudal margin
2) rounded caudodorsal margin
3) bean shape
4) venous enlargement
Signs of feline cardiomegaly: DV
valentine shape
Signs of a PDA
1) aortic enlargement
2) MPA enlargement
3) left-sided cardiomegaly
what pulmonary vessels can we consistently see on:
a) left lateral
b) DV
a) pulmonary vessels to the cranial lung lobe
b) pulmonary vessels to the caudal lung lobe
what causes an enlarged pulmonary artery
1) left to right shunts
2) heartworm
3) pulmonary hypertension
what causes an enlarged pulmonary vein
left-sided heart failure
if you take an expiratory radiograph what happens
lungs whiter than normal, get atelectasis (artifact due to incomplete inhalation)
what does a caudodorsal lung distribution indicate
cardiogenic or non-cardiogenic pulmonary edema
what does a cranioventral lung distribution indicate
pneumonia, hemorrhage, or neoplasia
define an interstitial pattern
soft tissue opacity in the lungs that partially silhouettes with the pulmonary vessels
define an alveolar pattern
soft tissue opacity in the lungs that totally obscures the pulmonary vessels
what are two signs associated with an alveolar pattern
air bronchogram and lobar sign
is interstitial or alveolar pattern more severe
alveolar
what is a bronchial pattern
soft tissue opacity that follows the airways, creating parallel lines and rings
what can cause a bronchial pattern
airway disease and lymphatic disease
T/F pleural fluid can silhouette with lung pathologies, the heart and the diaphragm
T
what are signs of pleural fluid
1) silhouetting with structures (heart, diaphragm)
2) pleural fissures
3) rounding of lung lobes
how can you distinguish fat in the mediastinum from pleural fluid
1) apex of heart on a lateral view will not silhouette with fat, but will with fluid
2) pleural fluid will obscure the heart on a VD view
signs of a pneumothorax
1) lungs retracted
2) air-filled space where lungs normally extend
3) blood vessels do not extend all the way to the body wall
4) dorsal deviation of the heart
pulmonary masses make what angle with the body wall? what about non-pulmonary masses
pulmonary: acute angle
non-pulmonary: obtuse angle
what is the most common cause of a widened mediastinum
fat accumulation in the cranial mediastinum
what is the normal width of the cranial mediastinum
no more than 2x the width of the thoracic vertebrae
mediastinal masses result in (3):
1) dorsal displacement of the caudal trachea
2) widening of the mediastinum
3) displacement of the lungs
what are the mediastinal lymph nodes (3)
1) sternal lymph nodes
2) cranial mediastinal lymph nodes
3) tracheobronchial lymph nodes
T/F the normal thoracic lymph nodes are visible
F; only become visible if enlarged or if pneumomediastinum
how can you distinguish between enlarged tracheobronchial lymph nodes and an enlarged left atria (as they are both at the same location)
enlarged tracheobronchial ln will cause VENTRAL displacement of the trachea whereas left atrial enlargement will cause DORSAL displacement of the trachea (as well as other signs associated with left-sided heart failure)
where are the sternal ln located
dorsally to the 2nd to 3rd sternebrae
what is a sign of esophageal enlargement, especially megaesophagus
tracheal stripe sign (prominent thickened dorsal margin of trachea due to superimposition of the tracheal and esophageal walls)
what are the signs of an esophageal FB
soft tissue or mineralized opacity in the esophagus
what are the signs of a persistent right aortic arch (PRAA)
1) focal megaesophagus cranially
2) left deviation of trachea
what is a common sequelae of megaesophagus
aspiration pneumonia -> alveolar pattern present
what type of hernia is present in brachycephalic breeds
hiatal
signs of a hiatal hernia
1) cranially rounded soft tissue/gas opacity in plane with the esophagus
2) broad base to diaphgram
signs of diaphragmatic hernia
abdominal contents in the thorax
signs of peritoneal-pericardial diaphragmatic hernia (PPDH)
1) abdominal contents in pericardium
2) reduced cranial abdominal content
3) enlarged cardiac silhouette with non-uniform soft tissue opacity
what great vessels can you normally see in a thoracic radiograph
aorta, caudal vena cava
what lateral projection highlights the left lung lobes
right lateral
what lateral projection highlights the right lung lobes
left lateral
what is the caudal mediastinal reflection and where do we see it
on the VD view, thin soft tissue line extending from cardiac apex to diaphragm on the left side of the patient
what is the word to describe multidimensional imaging and what is the most common
tomographic imaging; CT
concentric vs eccentric hypertrophy
concentric: myocardium enlarged, volume decreases
eccentric: myocardium same size, volume increases
is right or left sided cardiomegaly more common
left
what are signs of left sided congestive heart failure
- pulmonary venous enlargement
- enlargement of the cardiac silhouette
- interstitial and/or alveolar pattern
what are signs of pericardial effusion
- globoid cardiomegaly
- pulmonary arteries smaller
- enlarged cardiac silhouette
what are the signs of tension pneumothorax
- barrelling of ribs
- may see normal structures deviated to one side
- large volume of gas in affected pleural space
- marked deviation of heart
characteristics of thymoma
1) mass in the cranial mediastinum
2) megaesophagus
3) aspiration pneumonia (secondary to megaesophagus)
