Question

An emergency room physician has ordered ankle and lower leg images on a patient with an obvious lower leg deformity. What is the best way to obtain the mortise image?

1) Internally rotate the patient's lower leg 15 to 20 degrees
2) Internally rotate the patient's lower leg 45 degrees
3) Central ray is angled 15 to 20 degrees lateromedial
4) Central ray is angled 45 degrees lateromedial

Answer 1

The best way to obtain a mortise image for a patient with an obvious lower leg deformity is to internally rotate the patient's lower leg 15 to 20 degrees. The central ray should be angled 15 to 20 degrees lateromedial to obtain a good mortise image.

Step-by-step explanation:

The best way to obtain a mortise image for a patient with an obvious lower leg deformity is to internally rotate the patient's lower leg 15 to 20 degrees.

The mortise image is a specialized view of the ankle joint that allows visualization of the joint space between the tibia, fibula, and talus bones. Internal rotation helps to align these bones properly for better image capture.

This position ensures that the central ray is aligned properly and the joint space is visualized clearly. The central ray should be angled 15 to 20 degrees lateromedial to obtain a good mortise image.