Chest Imaging
Simple quantitative chest CT for pulmonary edema
Pulmonary edema is one of the most common entities that is encountered on routine chest imaging in both the inpatient and outpatient settings. Cardiogenic pulmonary edema is commonly caused by acute decompensated heart failure. The chest x-ray (CXR) is one of the most frequently utilized noninvasive diagnostic tests ordered to confirm or rule out pulmonary edema. CXR assessment of pulmonary edema has been shown to correlate with volume status, total blood volume [1–3], and other indicators of heart failure [4].Pulmonary Edema: A Pictorial Review of Imaging Manifestations and Current Understanding of Mechanisms of Disease
Pulmonary edema is a common clinical entity caused by the extravascular movement of fluid into the pulmonary interstitium and alveoli. The four physiologic categories of edema include hydrostatic pressure edema, permeability edema with and without diffuse alveolar damage (DAD), and mixed edema where there is both an increase in hydrostatic pressure and membrane permeability. As radiographic manifestations and etiologies are varied, an appreciation for both the common and uncommon manifestations and causes of pulmonary edema is essential for accurate diagnosis.
