Ning Jin, Peter J Sloane
A pulmonary nodule is a single, nearly spherical, well-circumscribed pulmonary opacity up to 30 mm in diameter and surrounded by aerated lung tissue. In radiographs, pulmonary nodules may appear as solid, completely obscuring the lung parenchyma, or as subsolid, not completely obscuring adjacent tissues. A subsolid pulmonary nodule may be further subclassified as a pure ground glass nodule (pGGN) or a part solid nodule, a mixture of ground glass components and focal opacity obscuring the adjacent tissues. Guidelines for evaluation of solid pulmonary nodules are based on nodule size, recommending vigilance and non-operative management for small nodules (less than 8 mm in diameter) and diagnostic biopsy for nodules with a diameter of 8 mm or more...
2014: Journal of Community Hospital Internal Medicine Perspectives