Sacrum Lateral
Position the Patient
- Lateral recumbent
- Knees flexed
- Arms forward
- Mid-coronal plane centered to IR
Words That Work
“Lie on your side with your knees comfortably bent and your arms forward. Keep your top hip directly over your bottom hip—like stacking building blocks—so your pelvis doesn’t roll forward or backward. I’ll make a small adjustment to get a true side view of your sacrum. Breathe all the way out, hold it, and stay still.”
Lateral sacrum positioning
Set Up the Shot
- Center here
- Central ray
- 3–4" posterior to ASIS
- Include this in the field
- Collimation
- Sacrum region
- Set the distance
- SID
- 40"
- Check the technique
- Technique
- 80-90 kVp
- Follow facility protocols
Common Pitfalls
- •Rotation
- •Sacrum not clearly visualized
- •Posterior margins not sharp
Evaluate the Image
What should be visible?
- Entire sacrum
- Sacral curvature
Does the image pass?
- ✓Sacrum clearly visualized
- ✓No rotation (greater sciatic notches and femoral heads superimposed)
- ✓Sharp posterior margins