15/12/2025
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🧠 HOW TO READ A HEAD CT – A SIMPLE YET POWERFUL GUIDE** 🧠
Ever looked at a brain CT and wondered *what exactly am I supposed to see*?
This infographic breaks it down in a **clear, visual, and clinically practical way** — focusing on the **deadliest and most time-critical findings**: **bleeding, mass effect, herniation, and stroke**.
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🔴 1. BLOOD ON CT SCAN
**Golden rule:** Blood is denser than brain tissue → it appears **bright white** on CT.
# # # 🩸 Types of Intracranial Bleeding
A️⃣ Epidural Hematoma (EDH)
📍 **Location:** Between skull & dura
🔍 **Shape:** Lens-shaped (biconvex)
🚫 **Does NOT cross suture lines**
⚡ **Cause:** Arterial bleed (classically middle meningeal artery)
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B️⃣ Subdural Hematoma (SDH)
📍 **Location:** Between dura & arachnoid
🔍 **Shape:** Crescent moon
✔️ **Crosses suture lines**
🩸 **Cause:** Venous bleed (bridging veins)
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C️⃣ Subarachnoid Hemorrhage (SAH)
📍 **Location:** Below arachnoid
🔍 **Appearance:** Curving white blood in sulci & cisterns
💥 **Cause:** Ruptured aneurysm
➡️ Blood follows the natural folds of the brain
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⚠️ 2. MASS EFFECT – PRESSURE THAT KILLS
Mass effect means **the brain is under pressure** due to blood, swelling, or tumor.
🔑 Key Warning Signs
A️⃣ Basal Cistern Compression
🧠 Normal CT shows a **pentagon-shaped cistern**
❌ Loss of this pentagon = **dangerously raised intracranial pressure**
👉 “Loss of pentagon & smile” = **severe brain swelling**
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B️⃣ Midline Shift
📏 Brain pushed to the opposite side
⚠️ Indicates **significant pressure and poor prognosis**
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C️⃣ Brain Herniation Types
🔻 **Subfalcine Herniation**
• Brain pushed under the falx
• Midline distortion
🔻 **Transtentorial Herniation**
• Brain pushed downward
• Compresses brainstem
🚨 **Immediately life-threatening**
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🧠 3. STROKE ON CT – EARLY CLUES MATTER
Normal Brain CT
✔️ Sharp distinction between **gray and white matter**
Early Stroke Signs
❌ Gray-white junction becomes **blurred**
🎨 Looks like colors melting together
🩶 Gray matter appears darker due to ischemia
🐙 *“Octopus Sign”*
• Irregular loss of gray-white differentiation
• Tentacle-like pattern → **early ischemic stroke**
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🔁 QUICK RECAP
This image teaches you to:
✔️ Identify **types of brain bleeding**
✔️ Recognize **mass effect & herniation**
✔️ Spot **early stroke changes**
✔️ Use **shape + location** for fast diagnosis
📌 A must-know guide for every medical student, intern, emergency doctor, and radiology
HeadCT
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