Do you wonder what your chest CT result means? Are you concerned about the intricate wording of the study description? Would you like to know what disease the result may indicate? If so, then this article is for you !.
Remember that this article is only intended to familiarize you with the medical wording often found in the descriptions of imaging tests. The correct interpretation can only be made by a physician experienced in this field. Never analyze the results of imaging tests yourself!
Computed tomography (CT) of the chest is a very important and accurate examination used for imaging the lungs and other organs of the chest. It is more sensitive and specific than chest X-ray. Usually, it is the next stage of diagnostics when abnormalities in the radiograph are found.
The main indications for a chest CT scan are:
- chronic cough
- blood plucking,
- chest X-ray abnormalities,
- sarcoidosis,
- chest injuries,
- suspicion of a neoplastic disease,
- suspected pulmonary embolism.
Check how to prepare for a chest CT scan
Selected terms used in the description of chest computed tomography
- Air bronchogram in chest computed tomography
What it means: the lumen of a patent bronchus is visible against the background of the lung parenchyma with reduced aeration.
Interpretation: The symptom may be seen in pneumonia or atelectasis.
Find out more about atelectasis
- Pleural plaque in chest computed tomography
Which means: flat pleural thickening saturated with calcium salts.
Interpretation: characteristic of pleural tuberculosis and asbestosis.
What are the causes of asbestosis?
- Subpleural curvilinear line in chest computed tomography
Which means: linear shading that runs subpleural parallel to the pleura.
Interpretation: picture characteristic of asbestosis or systemic scleroderma.
- Atelectasis (round or lamellar) in chest computed tomography
Which means: it is the result of reduced lung volume with limited lung aeration.
Interpretation: Atelectasis due to pressure (due to the presence of fluid or air in the pleura) and atelectasis resulting from secondary air resorption from the alveoli are distinguished. It appears in CT as the so-called comet tail.
- Halo symptom in chest computed tomography
Which means: a frosted glass-type shaded area surrounds a denser area, such as a solid tumor.
Interpretation: the symptom is non-specific, it may occur in many diseases, for example in cancer or inflammatory vascular diseases.
- Atoll (inverted halo) symptom in chest computed tomography
Which means: it points to an oval, opal glass type shading area surrounded by a narrow area of higher compaction.
Interpretation: a symptom characteristic of cryptogenic pneumonia.
- Paving stone symptom in chest computed tomography
Which means: in the area of changes in the type of frosted glass (or opal glass), linear partition shades coexist.
Interpretation: Characteristic primarily of ARDS or pulmonary proteinosis.
- Honeycomb symptom in chest computed tomography
Which means: the presence of small, thick-walled cysts.
Interpretation: It occurs in such conditions as: advanced interstitial fibrosis or bronchiectasis.
Check how bronchiectasis manifests itself
- Signet sign in chest computed tomography
Which means: next to each bronchus, an artery runs in parallel, which under physiological conditions has a similar diameter. If, in the cross-section, the bronchus has a distinctly larger diameter than the artery, it is said to be a signet ring symptom.
Interpretation: symptom characteristic of bronchiectasis.
- Emphysema bladder in chest computed tomography
Which means: it is a circular air space in the lung with a diameter greater than 1 cm.
Interpretation: Indicates emphysema.
What is emphysema?
- Single lung nodule on chest computed tomography
This means: a single lump in the lung, up to 3 cm in diameter, may be solid or partially solid.
Interpretation: most often means cancer (benign or malignant), abscess or granulomatous disease (eg sarcoidosis).
Read more about sarcoidosis
- Air trap in chest computed tomography
Interpretation: symptom characteristic of bronchial asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease – Everything You Need To Know
- Peripheral distribution in chest computed tomography
Which means: location of the lesion within 2 cm from the pleura.
- Cyst in chest computed tomography
Which means: it indicates the presence of a well-delimited tank (containing air or fluid).
- Linear non-septum shading in chest computed tomography
Which means: it is generally due to local fibrosis and is independent of the anatomical structures of the lung.
Interpretation: May indicate fibrosis after pneumonia or pulmonary infarction.
Read more about complications of pneumonia
- Shading of the type of milk glass (frosted glass) in the computed tomography of the chest
Which means: it results from the reduced aeration of the alveoli, but with a visible vascular drawing.
Interpretation: the main reasons for the frosted glass include: slight thickening of the lung interstitium, incomplete filling of the alveoli with fluid, and reduced aeration of the alveoli. The shading of the milky glass type may indicate pneumonia, alveolar bleeding or pulmonary embolism.
Symptoms and treatment of pulmonary embolism
- Interstitial changes in chest computed tomography
What they mean: These are changes due to abnormalities in the pulmonary parenchyma.
Interpretation: interstitial lesions often indicate sarcoidosis, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, connective tissue disease, pneumoconiosis.
Learn more about Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis
Most of the terms coincide with the terms used to describe a chest X-ray, however, it should be borne in mind that CT is a more accurate examination and allows for the detection of changes that are not visible in a classic radiograph.
Bibliography:
- Intern by Szczeklik. Handbook of internal diseases, A. Szczeklik, P. Gajewski. Practical Medicine, Krakow 2014.
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