Chest - Trauma Flashcards
What is most common chest trauma presentation?
rib #
Why are ribs not being treated as conservatively as they was?
movement towards ORIF interventions
Radiographic appearance of rib #
Ribs arent smooth and curvilinear
angulation of ribs
soft tissue disruptions such as sub cutaneous emphysema.
How is pneumothorax caused? (in terms of outcome of injury)
Pressure differences cause lack of surface adhesion created by pleural fluid, causing the visceral pleura to come away from the parietal pleura.
Why should Pneumothorax been done erect? and what is good radiographic skills for this projection
TO show free air, otherwise dead air can be SI’d on healthy air (in supine)
Take on inspiration and expiration ( as pneumothorax can change drastically on expiration)
ENSURE TO LABEL IMAGES AS SUCH
Examples of how an internal penetrative injury can occur that causes a pneumothorax
pleural cystic rupture .. BLEB (blister with fluid)
What can having a pneumothorax predispose you too
tension pneumothorax and subsequent pneumothorax
What could be causing a psuedopneumothorax?
Mach effect from fat such as breast tissues
Can a closed pneumothorax lead to a tension pneumothorax?
yes
WHy does heart get bigger during a tension PT
blodd vessels are strangled but heart is trying harder to pump blood out, so swelling of heart occurs whilst its simultaneously being crushed
RAdiographic sign of tension PT
look at heart, will typically get shifted further to left or more to the right (opposite side of the PT)
What presentation can be linked with pneumomediostinum?
coughing
What is a pneumomediostinum?
free air around the mediastinum or heart (sometimes both)
Radiographic appearance of pneumomediastinum and what can it also caused?
Black air stripe around the mediastinum structures and can lead to subcutaneous emphysema
Why is it important to have a patient with haemathorax erect?
to show fluid levels
