Conditions commonly identified by chest radiography
Pneumonia
Pneumothorax
Interstitial lung disease
Heart failure
Bone fracture
Hiatal hernia
Chest radiographs are used to diagnose many conditions involving the chest wall, including its bones, and also structures contained within the thoracic cavity including the lungs, heart, and great vessels.
Pneumonia and congestive heart failure are very commonly diagnosed by chest radiograph.
Chest radiographs are also used to screen for job-related lung disease in industries such as mining where workers are exposed to dust.

For some conditions of the chest, radiography is good for screening but poor for diagnosis.
When a condition is suspected based on chest radiography, additional imaging of the chest can be obtained to definitively diagnose the condition or to provide evidence in favor of the diagnosis suggested by initial chest radiography.

Unless a fractured rib is suspected of being displaced, and therefore likely to cause damage to the lungs and other tissue structures, x-ray of the chest is not necessary as it will not alter patient management.

The main regions where a chest X-ray may identify problems may be summarized as ABCDEF by their first letters:
Airways, including hilar adenopathy or enlargement
Breast shadows
Bones, e.g. rib fractures and lytic bone lesions
Cardiac silhouette, detecting cardiac enlargement
Costophrenic angles, including pleural effusions
Diaphragm, e.g. evidence of free air, indicative of perforation of an abdominal viscus
Edges, e.g. apices for fibrosis, pneumothorax, pleural thickening or plaques
Extrathoracic tissues
Fields (lung parenchyma), being evidence of alveolar flooding
Failure, e.g. alveolar air space disease with prominent vascularity with or without pleural effusions
Conditions commonly identified by chest radiography
Pneumonia
Pneumothorax
Interstitial lung disease
Heart failure
Bone fracture
Hiatal hernia
Chest radiographs are used to diagnose many conditions involving the chest wall, including its bones, and also structures contained within the thoracic cavity including the lungs, heart, and great vessels. Pneumonia and congestive heart failure are very commonly diagnosed by chest radiograph. Chest radiographs are also used to screen for job-related lung disease in industries such as mining where workers are exposed to dust.
For some conditions of the chest, radiography is good for screening but poor for diagnosis. When a condition is suspected based on chest radiography, additional imaging of the chest can be obtained to definitively diagnose the condition or to provide evidence in favor of the diagnosis suggested by initial chest radiography.
Unless a fractured rib is suspected of being displaced, and therefore likely to cause damage to the lungs and other tissue structures, x-ray of the chest is not necessary as it will not alter patient management.
The main regions where a chest X-ray may identify problems may be summarized as ABCDEF by their first letters:
Airways, including hilar adenopathy or enlargement
Breast shadows
Bones, e.g. rib fractures and lytic bone lesions
Cardiac silhouette, detecting cardiac enlargement
Costophrenic angles, including pleural effusions
Diaphragm, e.g. evidence of free air, indicative of perforation of an abdominal viscus
Edges, e.g. apices for fibrosis, pneumothorax, pleural thickening or plaques
Extrathoracic tissues
Fields (lung parenchyma), being evidence of alveolar flooding
Failure, e.g. alveolar air space disease with prominent vascularity with or without pleural effusions
Chest radiograph