Imaging of chest wall disorders.

Pathologic processes that may involve the chest wall include congenital and developmental anomalies, inflammatory and infectious diseases, and soft-tissue and bone tumors. Many of these processes have characteristic radiologic appearances that allow definitive diagnosis. Sternal deformities can be visualized at radiography and their severity quantified with computed tomography (CT). In cervical rib, CT with multiplanar reconstruction may demonstrate relevant anatomic detail and the relationship between bone deformity and arterial compression. In Poland syndrome, radiography reveals an area of hyperlucency on the affected side, whereas CT demonstrates the absence of the greater pectoral muscle and clearly depicts associated musculoskeletal anomalies. Tuberculosis typically manifests at radiography and CT as osseous and cartilaginous destruction and soft-tissue masses with calcification and rim enhancement. Aspergillosis involving the chest wall manifests as pulmonary consolidations and permeative osteolytic changes of the rib and spine at CT and as an area of increased signal intensity at T2-weighted magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. Neurogenic tumors and hemangiomas also typically have high signal intensity at T2-weighted MR imaging. Apparent mass extension or unequivocal bone destruction seen at CT or MR imaging may indicate chest wall involvement by lymphoma. Radiologically, soft-tissue sarcomas typically appear as areas of soft-tissue density or attenuation, often associated with necrotic areas of low density or attenuation. At radiography, plasmacytoma typically manifests as well-defined, "punched-out" lytic lesions with associated extrapleural soft-tissue masses. Chondrosarcoma frequently appears as a large, lobulated excrescent mass arising from a rib with scattered flocculent calcifications characteristic of its cartilaginous mix. Familiarity with these radiologic features facilitates accurate diagnosis and optimal patient treatment.