Mediastinal trauma and other acute mediastinal conditions.

Acute mediastinal diseases most often result from penetrating or blunt trauma and from iatrogenic injuries related to the misplacement of tubes and catheters. The commonest chest film findings of mediastinal disease include mediastinal contour alteration, such as obliteration of normal structures, mediastinal widening, and pneumomediastinum. Characteristic mediastinal findings indicating injury to specific mediastinal structures are presented.