Case 2: What scan

Clinical History

HPI: 16 year old boy hit in the head with a baseball. He denies loss of consciousness.

Questions

1. What is your clinical differential diagnosis?

Answer

2. What scan would you order next?

• In order to evaluate trauma patients for skull fractures and intracranial hemorrhage, a non contrast head CT should be performed. Contrast is not typically indicated in the setting of trauma.
• Contrast, which is bright on CT, may actually mask subtle hemorrhage within the subarachnoid space.

View Images