Hampton's hump, also called Hampton hump, is a
radiologic sign
A radiologic sign is an objective indication of some medical fact (that is, a medical sign) that is detected by a physician during radiologic examination with medical imaging (for example, via an X-ray, CT scan, MRI scan, or sonographic scan). ...
which consists of a shallow wedge-shaped opacity in the periphery of the
lung with its base against the pleural surface. It is named after
Aubrey Otis Hampton, who first described it in 1940.
Hampton's hump along with
Westermark sign
In chest radiography, the Westermark sign is a sign that represents a focus of oligemia (hypovolemia) (leading to collapse of vessel) seen distal to a pulmonary embolism (PE). While the chest x-ray is normal in the majority of PE cases, the Westerm ...
may aid in the diagnosis of
pulmonary embolism
Pulmonary embolism (PE) is a blockage of an artery in the lungs by a substance that has moved from elsewhere in the body through the bloodstream ( embolism). Symptoms of a PE may include shortness of breath, chest pain particularly upon breathin ...
, although they are rare and their sensitivities and interoperator reliabilities are low. If the sign is present in an image, there is a high chance that the person has a pulmonary embolism, but when the sign is absent a pulmonary embolism is not ruled out.
References
{{Radiologic signs
Radiologic signs