ICM-II: CHEST, case 4 |
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Given the patient's history of shortness of breath after a long flight, the most worrisome diagnosis to consider is a pulmonary embolism. There are many different imaging studies that can be done to diagnose this condition, and a blood test that is not specific, but can be used to exclude the diagnosis in patients at low clinical risk of PE: a d-dimer test (if it is normal, then PE is very unlikely and no other tests may be needed-in our patient, the risk of PE is higher, so d-dimer is not indicated).
What are technical parameters of this exam? What can you tell about the patient's body habitus? How was the IV contrast given?