Chest Trauma.

Chest injury is an important contributor to mortality and deserves rapid diagnosis. Although conventional radiography (CR) is not as accurate for chest injuries as multidetector computed tomography (MDCT), CR remains an important initial diagnostic tool in trauma care. Signs of chest injuries are, however, often subtle and difficult to identify during CR of supine anteroposterior trauma. This chapter reviews subtle CR findings that suggest relevant chest injuries by correlating these CR signs with the appearance of injuries on coronal reformatted MDCT. Attention will be paid to the following diagnoses: aortic injury, diaphragmatic injury, tracheobronchial tree injury, pulmonary contusion, pneumothorax, hemothorax, rib fractures, and scapulothoracic dissociation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]