Diagnostic Radiology/Chest Imaging/Unilateral Hyperlucent Lung

  1. Recognize a unilateral hyperlucent lung on a radiograph or chest CT
  2. Identify the common causes for unilateral hyperlucent lung on a chest radiograph
  3. Give an appropriate differential diagnosis when a hyperlucent lung is seen on a chest radiograph, and suggest a specific diagnosis when certain associated findings are seen (i.e. absence of a breast in a patient after mastectomy for breast cancer, absence of a pectoralis muscle in a patient with Poland's syndrome, unilateral bullous disease/emphysema, or air trapping on expiration in a patient with Swyer-James syndrome or an endobronchial foreign body)