Consult

December 30th 2014

A resident consulting me: ‘Could you please have a look at this X-thorax (bedposition) and the position of the feeding tube?’
Me: ‘Oh yeah sure. It looks like its position is a bit too shallow. I suggest you should run it up a bit further.’
Resident: ‘And what is that on the right below?’
Me: ‘I don’t understand what you mean. The right of the screen, or the right of the patient?’
R: ‘The right of the patient.’
Me: 'That's air in the colon, that's normal.'
R: 'No, I mean, more to the right.'
Me: ‘Oh that… That’s air. Nothing to worry about.’
R: ‘But… in or outside the patient??’
Me: ‘Outside of course.’

To explain, as I don't have the accompanying image here;
The patient was a bit overweight (according to the x-ray findings) and the love handles rolled over each other, with trapping some air.