Spinal Tumors and Pseudotumors . Associated imaging abnormalities may include mural thickening of the affected carotid artery and stranding of surrounding fat (Fig 16) (52). Figure 6a. Acute invasive fungal sinusitis is characterized by unilateral destruction of the osseous margins of the sinus, with extension into adjacent structures such as the orbits, intracranial compartment, and subcutaneous tissues. Still, having a systematic approach to evaluating the common locations of disease is beneficial for efficient and consistent detection of all salient imaging findings. (c) Axial contrast-enhanced CT image (lung window) obtained inferior to a shows a nodular opacity (arrow) at the left lung apex, consistent with a septic pulmonary embolus. Cranial nerves (diagrams) Illustrations. The presence of supportive clinical features, such as tenderness over the mastoid prominence of the temporal bone, is required for diagnosis. As an exception, contrast material is not required to identify a suspected retained aerodigestive tract foreign body (5). Traditionally, infectious etiologies are the main cause of lymphadenitis. The classic striated enhancement pattern is seen in the right tonsil. Anterior Cervical Lymph Nodes. Arterial dissection is characterized by a defect in the intimal layer of the artery that allows passage of blood into the arterial wall. Rarely, swollen lymph nodes are caused by cancer.Your lymph nodes, also called lymph glands, play a vital role in your body's ability to fight off infections. The presence of degenerative changes should be noted, at least in general terms, and if severe spinal canal stenosis or an alignment abnormality is present, a more detailed description is warranted. Part of the lymphatic system, lymph nodes are scattered throughout the body, including the neck, armpits, abdomen and groin. Cranial nerves V, VI, and IX–XII also may be affected as infection spreads in the soft tissues (7). Internal cysts and a calcification also are noted. Adenopathy in the neck can be caused by many different entities, including infection, inflammatory disease, and malignancy. Take an over-the-counter pain reliever. We have listed below the lymph nodes of the head and neck, with a little information on each. Axial contrast-enhanced CT scans of neck through thyroid gland shows oblique white line drawn on each side of neck through posterolateral margin of anterior scalene muscle (A) and posterior margin of sternocleidomastoid muscle (Sc). (b) Twelve hours later, the CT examination was repeated with intravenous contrast material administration, and the abscess (arrowheads) could be delineated between the mandibular ramus and masseter muscle. Atherosclerosis of the cervical arteries, particularly at the carotid bulbs, is extremely common in middle-aged and older adults and can be evaluated by using multiple modalities, including CT (50). Nodal metastases usually lack the surrounding inflammatory stranding that is seen with bacterial adenitis. If there is tracheal compression, the craniocaudal length of the compression and the degree of reduction of the cross-sectional area should be estimated. There is also a large group of lymph nodes in the chest and abdomen, which are sometimes found to be enlarged on X-rays or CT scans. Although classically thought of as a disease of children, epiglottitis also affects adults, being most famously the likely cause of the death of George Washington in 1799 (16). (a) Axial nonenhanced CT image shows asymmetric soft-tissue thickening (white *) medial to the left mandibular ramus, as well as thickening of the left masseter muscle (black *). Lymph nodes are round, bean-shaped glands, and you have them throughout your body. When swollen lymph nodes are caused by an infection, this is known as lymphadenitis (lim-fad-uh-NIE-tis). In children, most commonly those between the ages of 2 and 4 years, retropharyngeal abscess is due to an upper respiratory infection or otitis that leads to enlarged lateral retropharyngeal nodes, which lie between the distal cervical internal carotid artery laterally and the prevertebral musculature medially (Fig 5), with subsequent suppuration and intranodal abscess formation (25). The condition involving mastoid effusion in conjunction with septal erosion is referred to as coalescent mastoiditis (60). Left frontal sinusitis and left frontal lobe abscess in a 22-year-old man. There is associated adjacent polypoid mucosal disease within the maxillary sinus (arrow). The mastoid air cells lie predominantly within the mastoid portion of the temporal bone but vary in extent considerably between individuals. For instance, ear pain, fever, and enlarged lymph nodes near your ear are clues that you may have an ear infection or cold. As such, it is possible that pneumonia that was not appreciated on a previously obtained chest radiograph may be visible in the lung apices on a neck CT image. Figure 5a. On CT images, the subcutaneous fat and muscular structures should have sharp definition without infiltration of the subcutaneous fat. The danger space is a well-described potential space between the alar fascia anteriorly and the prevertebral fascia posteriorly. There is gas (white arrows in b) within the adjacent left lateral soft tissues, consistent with perforation. On other images ( not shown ) did not show a diffusely enlarged and enhancing nodes without fat... 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