CT Neck Soft Tissue

CT Neck (Soft Tissue)

• When performing a CT Neck (Soft Tissue) exam, it is important to utilize angling of the gantry to avoid streak artifacts from the patient. From the orbits through the hard palate, the gantry should be angled parallel to the hard palate. Once through the hard palate, the gantry may be angled parallel to the body of the mandible.
• If possible, the patient should be instructed to stop swallowing during the imaging and breathe softly. Failure to comply with these instructions could result in suboptimal images from patient motion.
• When contrast is clinically indicated, the bolus should be injected with a delay of 45 to 90 seconds. The thyroid gland is typically hyperdense due to its iodine concentration, administration of iodine contrast increases the density.