- Etiology: blunt thoracic trauma to alveoli with alveolar hemorrhage
- Imaging: patchy airspace opacities with ill defined borders and non-segmental distribution, seen immediately on CT, can take 6 hours to appear on CXR, starts to clear in 1-2 days and resolves by 3-10 days, may develop a pneumatocele, CXR underestimates amount of lung injury present compared to CT
- DDX: opacities appearing > 1 day after trauma – aspiration, pneumonia, fat embolus
Radiology Cases of Pulmonary Contusion
![CXR and CT of pulmonary contusion](https://pediatricimaging.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/traumapulmonarycontusion01mdbilaterallt10thribfxmvacxrct16yo.jpg?w=1024)
![CXR and CT of rib fracture and pulmonary contusion](https://pediatricimaging.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/traumapulmonarycontusion01tap64pneumothoraxonbikehitrightsidebytruckribsct6yo.jpg?w=1024)
![CXR and CT of pneumothorax and pulmonary contusion and rib fracture](https://pediatricimaging.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/traumapneumothorax01mdrightribfracturesbilateralcontusionsmediastinalfluidnegativeangiomvacxrct17yo.jpg?w=1024)
![CT of chest tube malposition with chest tube in the lung parenchyma](https://pediatricimaging.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/chesttubemalfunction03mdtraumachesttubeinlungleftct14yo.jpg?w=1024)