“My sons's lung X-ray shows a different condition than it originally did. Why?”
My son is suffering from pneumonia due to influenza, so he had a chest X-ray last week. The day after, we took him again to get a chest x-ray after the doctors asked us to, but now the picture has changed and show a different condition. We aren't really sure what this means, especially since it doesn't show whether or not his condition is improving. Why is this happening?
4 Answers
It would be difficult for me to answer your question completely without actually viewing his X-rays, but disease processes are dynamic and can often change appearance rapidly. Sometimes, something looks like pneumonia, but then can be seen to be something else after antibiotic therapy. I'm sorry I can't answer this fully for you, but I do suggest you discuss your concerns with his physician. If you tell the physician that you just don't understand, they should do their best to help you understand his condition and the changing appearance on the X-rays.
X-rays show changes in tissue density. Patterns of density can have many different causes. Sometimes pneumonia can look like a tumor or fluid and sometimes a tumor or fluid can look like pneumonia. A CAT scan can provide more specific information than a chest X-ray, and even then, sometimes a biopsy would need to be performed to find out the cause.
Dr. Dupuy
Dr. Dupuy
Probably because a different radiologist read the second X-ray and disagreed.
Without seeing the films myself, that’s difficult to determine. You don’t mention as to whether there is an expansion of the infiltrate or whether the infiltrate is becoming smaller and more condensed. Pneumonia can change very rapidly in its appearance on the chest x-ray.
