Purpose of Apical Lordotic?

Purpose of Apical Lordotic?

• A. Evaluate Lung Apices and move the clavicle out of the way
• B. Evaluate diaphragms
• C. Evaluate mediastinum
• D. Evaluate thoracic spine

Answer: (A)

The main idea of the apical lordotic view is to clearly visualize the lung apices by moving the clavicles out of the way. By having the patient lean back (a lordotic angle) and angling the beam appropriately, the clavicles ride higher and anteriorly, reducing their superimposition over the apices. This frees the upper lung regions so subtle apical lesions can be seen more easily, which is especially helpful for detecting disease in the apices such as nodules or early tuberculosis. This projection isn’t primarily used to assess the diaphragms, mediastinum, or the thoracic spine; those structures are better evaluated with other chest views and lateral projections.

The main idea of the apical lordotic view is to clearly visualize the lung apices by moving the clavicles out of the way. By having the patient lean back (a lordotic angle) and angling the beam appropriately, the clavicles ride higher and anteriorly, reducing their superimposition over the apices. This frees the upper lung regions so subtle apical lesions can be seen more easily, which is especially helpful for detecting disease in the apices such as nodules or early tuberculosis.

This projection isn’t primarily used to assess the diaphragms, mediastinum, or the thoracic spine; those structures are better evaluated with other chest views and lateral projections.