The plain chest X-ray in acquired heart disease in adults

The chest X-ray is a cheap, easily repeatable and reproducible method of investigating the structure and function of the heart. While it is rarely of decisive diagnostic importance in the setting of modern methods of noninvasive investigation, it is valuable in evaluating the severity of cardiac pathology and also in revealing unsuspected abnormalities which may complicate management. For this reason all patients should have a chest X-ray, preferably both frontal and lateral, at the first attendance for cardiac evaluation. In most cardiac departments a routine frontal chest X-ray is taken at each outpatient appointment.