Pleural Thickening Cxr, Pleural Thickening Radiology Case Radiopaedia Org

Although pleural thickening is a common finding on routine chest x rays its radiological and clinical features remain poorly characterized.

Founder law firm. If the patient is upright when the x ray is taken then fluid will surround the lung base forming a meniscus a concave line obscuring the costophrenic angle and part or all of the hemidiaphragm. It arises from a number of causes. Apical pleural cap refers to a curved density at the lung apex seen on chest radiograph.

Prof drkhnoorul ameens unit m6 drg arun kumar image of the week. Pleural fibrosis has a number of causes and is the outcome of many pleural diseases and a potential complication of every inflammatory condition that affects the lungs. Our investigation of 28727 chest x rays obtained from annual health examinations confirmed that pleural thickening was the most common abnormal radiological finding.

Doctors can use a few different imaging scans to diagnose pleural thickening. According to etiology it may be classified as. Fluid gathers in the lowest part of the chest according to the patients position.

The pleura and pleural spaces are only clearly visible when abnormal. The condition is usually first spotted through a chest x ray in which pleural thickening appears as an irregular shadow of the pleura. Pleural thickening is a descriptive term given to describe any form of thickening involving either the parietal or visceral pleura.

Benign pleural thickening caused by fibrosis is the second most common pleural abnormality the most common one being effusion. It can occur with both benign and malignant pleural disease. A pleural effusion is a collection of fluid in the pleural space.

On cxr diffuse pleural thickening is seen as smooth continuous pleural density extending over at least 25 of the chest wall. This can be a subtle increase in radiographic density laterally on cxr and often includes blunting of the costophrenic angle 14 fig. Abstract pleural thickening has a variety of causes and often must be distinguished from pleural masses while pleural calcifications are frequently the result of chronic infections including bacterial or tuberculous empyema.

Some diseases such as mesothelioma cause pleural thickeningother pleural diseases lead to fluid accumulation pleural effusion or air gathering in the pleural spaces pneumothorax. The frequency of apical pleural thickening increases with age 3. The pleura show a variety of patterns of fibrosis.

Secondary to previous apical infection. The pleural plaques of asbestos may be localized soft tissue but frequently calcify with a characteristic radiologic appearance on both chest x ray and ct.