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The objective of this study was to assess the prevalence of pathologically proven intrapulmonary lymph nodes and to evaluate their appearance on CT.Over a 15-year period (1980-1994), 184 patients underwent minithoracotomies for evaluation of CT-detected peripheral pulmonary abnormalities. Of these 184 patients, 96 had well-circumscribed peripheral pulmonary nodules. The size, position, and radiographic features of all pathologically proven intrapulmonary lymph nodes were independently assessed by two experienced radiologists.The nodules in 17 (18%) of the 96 patients with well-circumscribed peripheral pulmonary nodules were pathologically proven to be intrapulmonary lymph nodes. Two of the 17 patients had two nodules; the remaining patients had solitary nodules. The maximum diameter of the nodules varied from 7 to 12 mm. All the nodes were located within 20 mm of a visceral pleural surface. Twelve of the nodules were located in the lower lobes, and the remaining nodules were located in the right middle lobe.Although intrapulmonary lymph nodes are not a well-known entity, our results indicate that they are discovered in a significant number of patients who undergo minithoracotomies for the evaluation of CT-detected pulmonary nodules. Although these lymph nodes do not possess any specific CT appearance, they should be considered in the differential diagnosis of single (or multiple) parenchymal nodules, particularly those found in the lower lobes.

The modified Eloesser procedure or open-window thoracostomy is a surgical treatment for chronic pleural empyema in which a relatively permanent drainage opening is created in the chest wall. The chest radiographs and CT scans of 13 patients who underwent a modified Eloesser window procedure were studied. On chest films, the Eloesser window characteristically appeared en face as an elliptical or crescent-shaped radiolucency with sharp superior and ill-defined inferior margins. It appeared in profile as a downward-sloping chest-wall defect with round superior and straight inferior margins. The first radiographs made after surgery often showed potentially confusing densities caused by the iodinated gauze used to pack the drained empyema cavity. On sequential chest films, the defect in the chest wall was always detectable, while the pleural cavity diminished in size and usually disappeared within 6 months. This analysis shows that the postoperative chest radiographs and CT scans in patients having the Eloesser window thoracostomy have features that are characteristic of the procedure.