X-ray anatomy of the heart.

X-ray anatomy of the heart.

X-ray examination of the heart of a living person is carried out mainly by chest X-ray in its various positions. Due to this, it is possible to inspect the heart from all sides and get an idea of ​​its shape, size and position, as well as the state of its departments (ventricles and atria) and the large vessels associated with them (aorta, pulmonary artery, vena cava).

The main position for the study is the anterior position of the subject (the course of the rays is sagittal, dorsoventral). In this position, two bright lung fields are visible, between which there is an intense dark, so-called middle, shadow. It is formed by the shadows of the thoracic spinal column and the sternum layered on top of each other and the heart, large vessels and organs of the posterior mediastinum located between them. However, this median shadow is considered only as a silhouette of the heart and large vessels, because the other formations mentioned (spine, sternum, etc.) usually do not appear within the limits of the cardiovascular shadow. The latter, in normal cases, both on the right and on the left, goes beyond the edges of the spinal column and the sternum, which become visible in the anterior position only in pathological cases (curvature of the spine, displacement of the cardiovascular shadow, etc.).

The above-mentioned median shadow has in the upper part a form of a wide band, which expands downwards and to the left in the form of an irregular triangle, with the base facing downwards. The lateral contours of this shadow have the form of protrusions, separated from each other by impressions. These tabs are called arcs. They correspond to those parts of the heart and the large vessels connected with it, which form the edges of the cardiovascular silhouette.