What causes opaque hemithorax?
The usual causes of opaque hemithorax include massive pleural effusion, large pulmonary mass, destroyed lung, consolidation, collapse and agenesis of lung.
What does complete opacification of lung mean?
Pulmonary opacification represents the result of a decrease in the ratio of gas to soft tissue (blood, lung parenchyma and stroma) in the lung. When reviewing an area of increased attenuation (opacification) on a chest radiograph or CT it is vital to determine where the opacification is.
What causes complete opacification of lung?
Complete opacification on chest radiographs may be due to collapse of the lung, consolidation, massive pleural effusion, empyema, hemothorax, chylothorax, fibrothorax, and other causes.
What is a hemithorax?
Hemithorax: Half of the thorax or, more simply, one side of the chest.
What is the most likely cause of the Opacified hemithorax based on the chest radiograph?
Complete Opacification of a hemithorax seen on a posterior anterior radiograph of Chest usually indicates presence of extensive disease. The diagnosis in such cases may be quite variable and the differential diagnosis extends from congenital conditions to inflammatory, infective and malignant conditions.
How do you treat opacities in the lungs?
In case of bacterial or viral infections, treating with intravenous antibiotics and other supportive medicine relieves the symptoms, and the haziness resolves spontaneously without any further management. In severe cases of ground-glass opacities, lobectomy surgery is used to remove the affected part of the lung.
Does opacity mean pneumonia?
Multifocal ill-defined opacities most often result from multiple consolidations but must be distinguished from invasive or hemorrhagic tumors. This is not a common appearance for community-acquired pneumonia, but when it occurs this appearance indicates a serious infection that is likely caused by a virulent organism.
What is the meaning of opacification?
[ ō-păs′ə-fĭ-kā′shən ] n. The process of making something opaque. The formation of opacities.
What is a Hydrothorax?
Hydrothorax is a noninflammatory collection of serous fluid within the pleural cavities. The effusion is clear and straw colored. Hydrothorax is unilateral or bilateral. The most common cause of hydrothorax is cardiac failure, but it is also frequently the result of renal failure and cirrhosis of the liver.
What is a Chylothorax?
Chylothorax is a rare condition in which lymphatic fluid leaks into the space between the lung and chest wall. When this fluid builds up in the lungs, it can cause a severe cough, chest pain and difficulty breathing. Chylothorax is a lymphatic flow disorder.
What is pleural space?
The chest (thoracic or pleural) cavity is a space that is enclosed by the spine, ribs, and sternum (breast bone) and is separated from the abdomen by the diaphragm. The chest cavity is lined by a thin shiny membrane called the pleura, which covers the inside surface of the rib cage and spreads over the lungs as well.