Imaging Analysis Of "Arc Sign In Right Heart Margin"

Objective:To investigate the occurrence rate, formation, imaging findings and clinical significance of "Arc sign in right heart margin" in chest DR image, and to enhance the diagnostic capacity of chest DR image. Methods:The chest DR images of 5000 patients were studied in PACS to account the occurrence rate of "Arc sign in right heart margin". The anatomical and pathological formation of "Arc sign in right heart margin" was decided by imaging contrastive analysis of DR images, CT images and the results of cardiac ultrasound examination, combining clinical history and pathological results. The relevant data was collected for statistical analysis. Results:In 5000 chest DR images, "Arc sign in right heart margin" was found in 229 cases, with an occurrence rate of 4.60%. The occurrence rate was 4.37% in male and 4.80% in female, and no significant difference between the two groups(P＞0.05). In another group,239 arcs were found in chest DR images with "Arc sign in right heart margin" in 197 patients, who also underwent chest MSCT scanning and cardiac ultrasound examination. The formations of "Arc sign in right heart margin":173 cases were identified as the normal left atrium,41 cases as inferior vena cava,4 cases as descending aorta distortion,2 cases as fat accumulation in pericardium and mediastinum,1 case as granulocytic sarcoma at right lower mediastinum,3 cases as hiatal hernia,3 cases as the pulmonary lesions in lower lobe of the right lung,8 cases as mediastinal lymph node enlargement,2 cases as paravertebral soft tissue thickening,2 cases as paravertebral abscess of spinal tuberculosis. Conclusion: Chest DR image can enhance the overlapped structures display. The occurrence rate of "Arc sign in right heart margin" was 4.60%. The main formations of "Arc sign in right heart margin" were normal physical structure, but some important lesions were found in minority patients. The formations can be decided by analyzing the shape, position and size of "Arc sign in right heart margin" in majority cases.