[Chest X-ray plate in bed-ridden patients in the Intensive Care Unit]

Chest radiographs using portable equipment is one most frequently used radiological investigations for bed-ridden patients. As the investigation is carried out using ionising radiation, the protection measures to be applied should be known. These investigations are normally hindered by the patient's condition and it is important to take into account that this circumstance can cause differences in the radiological study. As in all radiological studies, the reading and the diagnosis should be systematic and it is necessary to recognise the different elements that these patients may bare, in addition to the symptomatology of the possible pathologies that may exist in the chest.