The misleading appearance of silver nitrate on plain radiography.
Cauterisation with silver nitrate is commonly used to treat overgranulation. Silver nitrate has a high density and a high mass attenuation coefficient, and it is therefore highly radio-opaque. We present a case in which its topical application to an area of overgranulation was interpreted as a bony fragment by the reporting radiologist in a patient with a supracondylar humeral fracture whose radiograph after removal of K-wires showed a large radio-opaque lesion. Although not a new phenomenon, it is one not widely known, and it can lead to confusion and unnecessary further imaging.
Barts Health NHS Trust, UK.
N
N
Narayan
nogaro.mc@gmail.com.
M C
MC
Nogaro
A
A
Littlewood
M D
MD
Latimer
D016477:Artifacts; D002424:Caustics; D002425:Cautery / Q000379:methods; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003951:Diagnostic Errors; D005260:Female; D017102:Fracture Healing; D006097:Granulation Tissue / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006801:Humans; D006810:Humeral Fractures / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D011859:Radiography; D012835:Silver Nitrate
D002424:Caustics; D012835:Silver Nitrate