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What is the normal position of the trachea on a chest x-ray?
Central to slightly to the right.
What is the significance of tracheal shift?
Shift to the same side as the pathology indicates collapse. Shift to the opposite side of the pathology indicates mass effect as seen in massive pleural effusion and tension pneumothorax.
What is the differential diagnosis for an opacified hemithorax?
Collapse; pleural effusion; consolidation; mass lesion.
Homogeneous opacification of the right lung with the trachea pulled to the right side.
The cardiac shadow is not visualised as it is silhouetting with the opacified hemithorax due to mediastinal shift to the right side.
Collapse of the right lung.