emedicine.com case study question

[gluconeogenesis]

I subscribed to emedicine.com 's case studies and the
most recent one

Left Upper Quadrant Pain and Constipation
http://master.emedicine.com/email/radio/radio74/radio74answer.html

The case study refers to an enlarged left kidney in a CT scan
of the transversal plane. Usually the descriptions seem to
be correct, but this imaging is clearly the right kidney. You
can see the posterior spinous process of the vertebrae and
a normal sized left kidney. It's the right kidney that is enlarged
and has Staghorn calculus.

Would you confirm that the text is incorrect.

Thanks

It is fun to get a case study each week. Sometimes I don't have
much time to look at the case study when I receive it, but I usually
return to it on the weekend.

[MedicRN]

Remember when you view a CT you are in essence standing at the patients feet looking up towards the head. Thus the right side of the image is the patients left side and vica versa. Also the big '"R" on the left side of the image signifies the patients right side. The aorta is slightly to the patients left side of center of the vertebrae as it should be. The IVC is at the 1 o'clock position in relation to the patients right kidney on the left side of the image. And lastly, when the image of an abdomen is low enough to not show a liver, the right kidney is usually the only one present on the scan as the left kidney normally sits higher. Thus this oversized left kidney is visible on a plane that it normally should not be.

MedicRN

[stateofequilibrium]

Remember, all doctors are pervs, so they're all looking up the skirts. Right is left and left is right.

[gluconeogenesis]

Thank you very much MedicRN :) I didn't know that the view is from the
feet. I should have thought about the R instead of ignoring it. I
need to learn the basics about the markers on imaging.

[stateofequilibrium]

Thank you very much MedicRN :) I didn't know that the view is from the
feet. I should have thought about the R instead of ignoring it. I
need to learn the basics about the markers on imaging.

As RN said, all images will (or should) be orientated as if you're standing in front of their bed at their feet.