OBJECTIVE: The present study was aimed at describing the findings on high-resolution computed tomography in patients with exogenous lipoid pneumonia secondary to mineral oil aspiration MATERIALS AND METHODS: Eight adult patients - four men and four women - with mean age of 69.4 years were studied. All of the patients were users of mineral oil for treating intestinal constipation. High-resolution computed tomography studies of these patients were blindly evaluated by two radiologists. RESULTS: Air-space consolidation with areas of fat density and crazy paving pattern were the most frequent findings. The lesions were bilateral in six cases and unilateral in two CONCLUSION: Air-space consolidation with areas of fat density, associated with a clinical history of mineral oil ingestion virtually indicates a diagnosis of exogenous lipoid pneumonia.

Keywords: Exogenous lipoid pneumonia, High-resolution computed tomography, HRCT, Aspiration pneumonia, Lungs

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the main findings of chest high-resolution computed tomography in patients with amiodarone pulmonary toxicity. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Ten patients - six male and four female, average age of 73.5 years - with amiodarone-induced pneumonitis have undergone chest high-resolution computed tomography. RESULTS: The most relevant tomographic findings were linear or reticular opacities in six cases (60%), small high density nodules in six cases (60%), dense consolidations in three cases (30%) and increased density in the hepatic parenchyma in five of eight cases in which there was a superior abdomen CT scan (62.5%). CONCLUSION: The high-resolution computed tomography is a valuable non-invasive test for evaluating patients with amiodarone pulmonary toxicity and should always be performed when one suspects of the presence of this disease. The finding of interlobular septa thickening associated with increased density of lesions is highly suggestive of this diagnosis.

Keywords: Computed tomography, Amiodarone, Pulmonary toxicity

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the main findings of computed tomography in patients presenting acute leukemia complicated by angioinvasive aspergillosis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Computed tomography images of 19 patients were retrospectively studied for the presence of consolidations, nodules and masses, with or without presentation of halo sign, cavitation and air crescent sign. RESULTS: Consolidation was the most frequent finding, occurring in 12 of the 19 cases, most of them presenting the halo sign; cavitation was found in 5 of 12 cases, one of them with air crescent sign. Nodules and masses occurred respectively in six and four cases, most of them with halo sign. Cavitation was found in only one case of mass. Other findings observed were: crazy-paving pattern (two cases), patchy areas of ground-glass attenuation opacity (three cases) and pleural involvement (seven cases) under the form of effusion or thickening. CONCLUSION: Areas of consolidation, mass or nodule, even a solitary one, presenting halo sign on CT images evaluated in an appropriate clinical context are highly suggestive of angioinvasive aspergillosis.

Keywords: Angioinvasive pulmonary aspergillosis, Acute leukemia, Computed tomography

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the role of high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) in patients with leukemia and pulmonary symptoms, to establish the main patterns and to correlate them with the etiology. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a retrospective study of the HRCT of 15 patients with leukemia and pulmonary symptoms. The examinations were performed using a spatial high-resolution protocol and were analyzed by two independent radiologists. RESULTS: The main HRCT patterns found were ground-glass opacity (n=11), consolidation (n=9), airspace nodules (n=3), septal thickening (n=3), tree-in-bud pattern (n=3), and pleural effusion (n=3). Pulmonary infection was the most common finding seen in 12 patients: bacterial pneumonia (n=6), fungal infection (n = 4), pulmonary tuberculosis (n=1) and viral infection (n=1). Leukemic pleural infiltration (n=1), lymphoma (n=1) and pulmonary hemorrhage (n=1) were detected in the other three patients. CONCLUSION: HRCT is an important tool that may suggest the cause of lung involvement, its extension and in some cases to guide invasive procedures in patients with leukemia.

Keywords: Leukemias, High-resolution computed tomography, Lungs

We report the computed tomography findings of five patients with pathology proven pulmonary amyloidosis. Tracheobronchial amyloidosis with calcified nodules and plaques in the tracheal wall were seen in two patients. Two other patients had diffuse parenchymal disease with calcified lesions, one had reticular and nodular subpleural opacities whereas the other had nodular interlobular septal thickening and a parenchymal consolidation. The latter presented the nodular type of the disease with multiple sharp nodules scattered throughout the lungs and interspersed calcifications. The computed tomography findings observed were not specific but strongly suggestive of amyloidosis.

Keywords: Amyloidosis, Computed tomography, Lungs, Pulmonary calcifications

The authors report a case of dendriform pulmonary ossification in a male patient who had acute myocardial infarction and sudden death. Multiple hard thorns were found at autopsy. Histology analysis demonstrated osseous tissue resembling fish sticks. We present the post mortem plain x-ray films of the lungs and the pathology findings.

Keywords: Dendriform ossification, Lungs, Pathology

We report the findings of the high-resolution computed tomography of the chest of a patient with pulmonary talcosis related to intravenous injection of diluted oral medicine. The most important high-resolution computed tomography findings were small centrilobular nodules associated with conglomerated masses. Areas of emphysema and ground glass attenuation were also seen. These high-resolution computed tomography findings are highly suggestive of pulmonary talcosis.

Keywords: Talcosis, High-resolution computed tomography, Lung disease

We reviewed 17 cases of pulmonary lymphangioleiomyomatosis diagnosed by open lung biopsy. All patients were women with a mean age of 39.6 years. Tuberous sclerosis was diagnosed in two cases. The patients were submitted to high-resolution computed tomography that showed diffuse thin walled cystic lesions of less than 60 mm in diameter. Associated pneumothorax was seen in two cases. The main high-resolution computed tomography findings were diffuse, rounded, cystic lesions, generally of less than 20 mm in diameter.

Keywords: Lymphangioleiomyomatosis, Cystic lung diseases, High-resolution computed tomography

Pulmonary cryptococcosis is caused by Cryptococcus neoformans, a world-wide distribution unimorphic fungus that exhibits the same form in its natural habitat, animals and humans. The disease presents variable clinical and pathologic features and occurs in immunocompetent and immunocompromised patients. We reviewed the computed tomography findings of 14 patients with confirmed pulmonary cryptococcosis. The most frequent computed tomography findings were masses and pulmonary nodules. Other abnormalities included cavities, areas of consolidation, peribronchovascular interstitial thickening and diffuse linear opacities. Pulmonary masses were the most frequent findings (64.2%), followed by nodules (35.7%) whereas diffuse pulmonary disease accounted for 14.2% of the cases. The most affected areas were the upper lobes and the anterior regions. Computed tomography scan of the chest allows a precise assessment of pulmonary parenchymal involvement in patients with pulmonary cryptococcosis.

Keywords: Radiology, Pulmonary cryptococcosis, Computed tomography

Ground-glass opacity is a finding frequently seen in high-resolution computed tomography examinations of the chest and is characterized by hazy increased attenuation of lung, however without blurring of bronchial and vascular margins. Due to its unspecificity, association with other radiological, clinical and pathological findings must be considered for an accurate diagnostic interpretation. In this paper were reviewed 62 computed tomography examinations of patients with diffuse pulmonary diseases of 14 different etiologies in which ground-glass opacity was the only or the most remarkable finding, and correlated this findings with pathology abnormalities seen on specimens obtained from biopsies or necropsies. In pneumocystosis, ground-glass opacities correlated histologically with alveolar occupation by a foaming material containing parasites, in bronchioloalveolar cell carcinoma with thickening of the alveolar septa and occupation of the lumen by mucus and tumoral cells, in paracoccidioidomycosis with thickening of the alveolar septa, areas of fibrosis and alveolar bronchopneumonic exsudate, in sarcoidosis with fibrosis or clustering of granulomas and in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis with alveolar septa thickening due to fibrosis. Alveolar occupation by blood was found in cases of leptospirosis, idiopathic hemosiderosis, metastatic kidney tumor and invasive aspergillosis whereas oily vacuoli were seen in lipoid pneumonia, proteinaceus and lipoproteinaceus material in silicoproteinosis and pulmonary alveolar proteinosis, and edematous fluid in cardiac failure.

Keywords: Ground-glass opacity, Lungs, High-resolution computed tomography

Hyalinizing granulomas are benign fibrotic lesions that generally present multiple nodules seen on radiological examinations, which are frequently cavitary and/or calcified lesions. We report a case of a 28 year-old-woman with hyalinizing granulomas probably secondary to a previous tuberculosis infection. Hyalinizing granulomas should be included in the differential diagnosis of patients with multiple pulmonary nodules.

Keywords: Hyalinizing granulomas, Pulmonary nodules, Computed tomography

This paper describes the high-resolution computed tomography and anatomopathological findings of pulmonary lymphomas. We studied the chest high-resolution computed tomographies and histopathological data of 10 patients with biopsy-proven non-Hodgkin's or Hodgkin's disease. The most common radiologic findings in this series were areas of consolidation with air-bronchogram (n = 8). Other findings included multiple pulmonary nodules (n = 4), thickening of bronchovascular bundles (n = 3) and foci of ground-glass attenuation (n = 2). The present series results are consistent with the current available literature on radiographic appearance of the disease. The pathological correspondence of the areas of airspace consolidation was alveolar filling by neoplastic cells, the thickening of bronchovascular bundles was secondary to lymphomatous cells infiltrates, and the areas of ground-glass attenuation corresponded to alveolar septal infiltration by these cells.

Keywords: Pulmonary lymphomas, High-resolution computed tomography, Pathology

The aim of this study was to correlate the early findings observed on high-resolution computed tomography with anatomopathology results of patients with angioinvasive aspergillosis. The authors studied two patients with leukemia. The nodules seen on high-resolution computed tomography corresponded to areas of hemorrhagic infarction, necrotic coagulation and fungal hyphae infiltration whereas ground glass halo corresponded to intraalveolar hemorrhage. Nodules with halo sign were closely correlated with anatomopathology findings. We concluded that the anatomopathology findings can clearly explain the image features of the lesions observed on high-resolution computed tomography.

Keywords: Angioinvasive aspergillosis, High-resolution computed tomography, Anatomopathology, Lungs

The authors report the high-resolution computed tomography findings of three sandblaster patients with acute silicosis. High-resolution computed tomography showed air space disease in all patients, with consolidation, air bronchogram, and parenchymal calcifications. Centrilobular ground-glass nodules, generally confluent, as well as calcified mediastinal and/or hilar nodes and enlarged lymph nodes were also seen in all patients.

Keywords: Acute silicosis, Pneumoconiosis, Sandblasters, High-resolution computed tomography

Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is a genetically determined hamartomatous neurocutaneous disease with high phenotypic variability. TSC is characterized by widespread hamartomas and benign, or rarely malignant, neoplasms distributed in several organs throughout the body, especially in the brain, skin, retina, kidney, heart, and lung. Common manifestations include cortical tubers, subependymal nodules, white matter abnormalities, retinal abnormalities, cardiac rhabdomyoma, lymphangioleiomyomatosis, renal angiomyolipoma, and skin lesions. The wide range of organs affected by the disease implies that TSC1 and TSC2 genes play important roles in the regulation of cell proliferation and differentiation. Although recent advances in treatment have improved morbidity, the prognosis remains quite poor and nearly 40% of patients die by the age of 35 years. Imaging is important in the evaluation of TSC because of its role not only in presumptive diagnosis, but also in defining the full extent of involvement. This information allows a better understanding of the behavioural phenotype, as related to lesion location. Imaging also contributes to treatment planning. This pictorial review describes common and uncommon imaging manifestations of TSC.

Keywords: Tuberous sclerosis; Computed tomography; Magnetic resonance imaging.