Wooden foreign bodies in CT. Case reports and experimental studies

CT findings in 2 patients with a wooden foreign body in the orbital region soft tissue, and a series of CT measurements of wooden elements are presented. The wooden foreign bodies presented low HU numbers in CT and were initially interpreted as a gas collection. Different species of trees presented a large spectrum of densities, varying from the -550 HU of pine up to the +289 HU of ebony. The density of a spruce plank increased along with water-logging from -470 HU to -86 HU in 4 weeks, and peak enhancement up to 106 HU was found in the layer closest to the surface. It was concluded that a wooden foreign body in soft tissues may present CT patterns simulating materials as different as a gas bubble or a bone fragment.