CT CHEST WITHOUT CONTRAST, [DATE]:
CLINICAL INDICATION:  87-year-old with persistent cough. Patient has been
having
recurrent pneumonia. Patient denies history of malignancy.
A search for DICOM formatted images was conducted for prior CT imaging studies
completed at a non-affiliated media free facility.
COMPARISON:  There are no prior exam(s) available for comparison within the
past
12 months; however, comparison was made to the prior exam(s) dated prior CT
chest [DATE].
TECHNIQUE: The region of interest was scanned without contrast on a high
resolution low dose CT scanner.  3-D renderings were reconstructed on an
independent workstation. As per the [HOSPITAL] guidelines 3-
D
reconstructions are performed with concurrent physician supervision.
FINDINGS:
Minor pleural-parenchymal scarring is in the lung apices. Minor chronic
atelectasis is medially in the left lower lobe. There is no evidence for
pneumonia or bronchitis. Minimal cylindrical bronchiectasis most apparent in
the left lung apex. There is no emphysema or evidence for diffuse
interstitial
lung disease. The heart is mildly enlarged. There are moderate coronary artery
calcifications. Ascending aortic diameter is normal. In the anterior aortic
arch
there is mild widening of the diameter to 4.1 cm. Remainder of the thoracic
aorta is normal in caliber. Moderately prominent atherosclerotic
calcifications
along the arch and descending thoracic aorta are present. Main pulmonary
artery
diameter is 2.5 cm. The esophagus is normal in appearance. There is
potentially
a small decompressed hiatal hernia. No enlarged mediastinal lymph nodes are
found. There is no pleural effusion. No axillary adenopathy is present.
No concerning pathology of the included breast tissues. Limited imaging of the
upper abdomen shows small stable hypodense lesion in the right lobe of the
liver
consistent with incidental benign pathology. The surface of the liver exhibits
nodularity suggesting cirrhosis. Degenerative changes are in the shoulders and
thoracic spine. The thyroid gland is not well characterized given the
limited cranial extent of the scan.
IMPRESSION:
1. No acute appearing cardiopulmonary pathology and specifically no evidence
for
pneumonia.
2. Moderate coronary artery calcifications.
3. Mild cardiomegaly.
4. Potentially cirrhotic liver.
RADIATION DOSE REDUCTION: All CT scans are performed using radiation dose
reduction techniques, when applicable.  Technical factors are evaluated and
adjusted to ensure appropriate moderation of exposure.  Automated dose
management technology is applied to adjust the radiation doses to minimize
exposure while achieving diagnostic quality images.
