NEXUS Chest (blunt chest-trauma imaging)
NEXUS Chest CT rule for blunt trauma: imaging indicated if any of abnormal chest x-ray, distracting injury, chest-wall/sternal/thoracic-spine tenderness, age > 60, rapid deceleration, intoxication, or altered alertness.
Open the calculator → Runs in your browser. Data leaves only if you deliberately send a problem report from the interactive tool.
Example
- Abnormal chest x-ray
- Yes
Result: Any criterion present: chest imaging indicated.
The tool opens with these values already filled in. Replace them with your own.
What the result means
- 0 criteria
- No criteria met: thoracic imaging can be safely deferred per source.
- >=1 criterion
- One or more criteria met: chest imaging is indicated per source.
What you enter
- Abnormal chest x-ray
- Distracting painful injury
- Chest-wall / sternal / thoracic-spine tenderness
- Age > 60 years
- Rapid deceleration mechanism
- Intoxication
- Altered alertness / mental status
How this is calculated
Rodriguez RM, et al. PLoS Med. 2015;12(10):e1001883 (NEXUS Chest CT decision instrument). Imaging may be deferred only if all 7 criteria absent. Read the source ↗
A reference and educational tool. Not medical, legal, or financial advice, and not a substitute for clinician judgment.