Medical image of the week: hematopneumatoceles from pulmonary lacerations

Abstract

No abstract available. Article truncated after 150 words. A 17-year-old man was brought to the emergency room after a fall from a 50-foot bridge. He was hypoxemic on presentation, requiring endotracheal intubation. Chest computed tomography (CT) revealed bilateral airspace opacities consistent with pulmonary contusions, and multiple air-fluid levels diagnostic of pulmonary lacerations (Figures 1-3). Pulmonary lacerations are rare complications of blunt chest trauma (1). They can be contained within the lung parenchyma or may extend through the visceral pleura causing a pneumothorax. Due to its elastic recoil, the surrounding lung tissue pulls back from the laceration resulting in a round or oval cavity that may fill with air (pneumatocele), blood (hematocele) or both (hematopneumatocele). Lacerations are often obscured on chest x-ray as they are usually surrounded by contusion, requiring a CT for detection (2). They are classified into four types according to the mechanism of injury: Type 1 (compression rupture injury, most common type, usually centrally located), Type …

Keywords

• pulmonary
• lacertation
• hematopneumatocele
• pneumatocele
• hematocele
• CT scan
• chest x-ray
• trauma
• classification
• air fluid level