Chest X-Ray Interpretation
This is the chest x-ray for Ray Alderton from scenario SIC001US
Clinical Picture
- 42-year-old man presenting with 2 day history of coryza and non-productive cough.
- Stable renal transplant, no recent issues. No chest pain, no fever, no shortness of breath and no signs of sepsis. Daughter recently experienced similar symptoms.
- Looks well, normal vital signs, normal physical examination.
Findings
- Technical factors
- Rotation – Normal
- Inspiration – Adequate
- Picture – Adequate
- Exposure – Adequate
- A-E Assessment
- Airway – Trachea central
- Breathing – Clear lung fields
- Circulation – Normal heart size and border
- Diaphragm – No abnormalities, no free air
- Everything else – No abnormalities
Summary
- This is a normal chest x-ray
Differential diagnosis
- Appreciating there was a limited amount of information available, there was no significant concern in the patient history to suggest a sinister cause of cough. Though Ray had a renal transplant, he had no issues with it and the history was highly suggestive of a viral cause. Whilst it may be reasonable to inform Ray’s normal team of the situation, the most likely cause of the cough in this case was a viral respiratory tract infection.
Management
- Reassurance
- Symptomatic treatment of a viral infection
Further reading