PurposeThe purpose of this study is to compare interpretation efficiency of radiologists reading radiographs on 6 megapixel (MP) versus 12 MP monitors.ApproachOur method compares two sets of monitors in two phases: in phase I, radiologists interpreted using a 6 MP, 30.4 in. (Barco Coronis Fusion) and in phase II, a 12 MP, 30.9 in. (Barco Nio Fusion). Nine chest and three musculoskeletal radiologists each batch interpreted an average of 115 radiographs in phase I and 115 radiographs in phase II as a part of routine clinical work. Radiologists were blinded to monitor resolution.ResultsInterpretation times per radiograph were noted from dictation logs. Interpretation time was significantly decreased utilizing a 12 MP monitor by 6.88 s (p=0.002) and 6.76 s (8.7%) (p<0.001) for chest radiographs only and combined chest and musculoskeletal radiographs, respectively. When evaluating musculoskeletal radiographs alone, the improvement in reading times with 12 MP monitor was 6.76 s, however, this difference was not statistically significant (p=0.111). Interpretation of radiographs on 12 MP monitors was 8.7% faster than on 6 MP monitors.ConclusionHigher resolution diagnostic displays can enable radiologists to interpret radiographs more efficiently.
The purpose of this study is to compare interpretation efficiency of radiologists reading radiographs on 6 megapixel (MP) vs 12 MP monitors. Our method compares two sets of monitors in two phases: in phase I, radiologists interpreted using a 6MP, 30.4 inch (Barco Coronis Fusion) and in phase II, a 12MP, 30.9-inch (Barco Nio Fusion) is used. Nine chest and three musculoskeletal radiologists each batch-interpreted an average of 115 radiographs in phase I and 115 radiographs in phase II as part of routine clinical work. Radiologists were blinded to monitor resolution. Interpretation times per radiograph was noted from dictation logs. We found that interpretation was faster on 12 MP monitor by 6.88 (p = 0.002) and 6.76 seconds (8.7%) (p < 0.001) for chest radiographs only and combined chest and musculoskeletal radiographs, respectively. When evaluating musculoskeletal radiographs alone, the improvement in reading times with 12 MP monitor was 6.76 seconds (p = 0.111). Interpretation of radiographs on 12 MP monitors was ~8.7% faster than on 6 MP monitors.
The goal of this research was to examine whether search pattern training for central line positioning on chest radiographs (CXRs) improves the ability of healthcare trainees and practitioners to identify malpositioned central venous catheters. Two sets of CXRs with central catheters were shown; half of the images contained catheters that were appropriately positioned, half that were malpositioned. Subjects were asked to: mark the tip of the catheter using the simulated radiology workstations, indicate their confidence in tip localization, and state whether the catheter was appropriately positioned or malpositioned. Subjects were also given a survey assessing their thoughts about the usefulness of search pattern training and the simulated radiology workstation. There was a significant improvement in subjects’ ability to classify a catheter as malpositioned after training, p-value = 0.03. There was no significant difference in localization of the catheter tips or in the confidence for tip localization. Subjects’ responses to the questionnaire were significantly positive for all statements, indicating that they felt search pattern training using a simulated radiology workstation had a positive impact on their education. These results suggest that our knowledge of medical image perception may be useful for developing rational educational tools for image interpretation, and that simulated radiology workstations may be a helpful means of deploying these tools.
The goal of this research is to demonstrate that teaching healthcare trainees a formal search or scan pattern for evaluation of the lungs improves their ability to identify pulmonary nodules on chest radiographs (CXRs). A group of physician assistant trainees were randomly assigned to control and experimental groups. Each group was shown two sets of CXRs, each set with a nodule prevalence of approximately 50%. The experimental group received search pattern training between case sets, whereas the control group did not. Both groups were asked to mark nodules when present and indicate their diagnostic confidence. Subject performance at nodule detection was quantified using changes in area under the localization receiver operating characteristic curve (ΔAUC). There was no significant improvement in performance between case sets for the control group. There was a significant improvement in subject performance after training for the experimental group, ΔAUC=0.1539, p=0.0012. These results demonstrate that teaching a search pattern to trainees improves their ability to identify nodules and decreases the number of perceptual errors in nodule identification, and suggest that our knowledge of medical image perception may be used to develop rational tools for the education of healthcare trainees.
KEYWORDS: Ultrasonography, 3D image processing, Toxicity, Tissues, Stereoscopy, Radiotherapy, Statistical analysis, Ultrasonics, Reflectors, Control systems
Radiation-induced vaginal fibrosis is a debilitating side-effect affecting up to 80% of women receiving radiotherapy for their gynecological (GYN) malignancies. Despite the significant incidence and severity, little research has been conducted to identify the pathophysiologic changes of vaginal toxicity. In a previous study, we have demonstrated that ultrasound Nakagami shape and PDF parameters can be used to quantify radiation-induced vaginal toxicity. These Nakagami parameters are derived from the statistics of ultrasound backscattered signals to capture the physical properties (e.g., arrangement and distribution) of the biological tissues. In this paper, we propose to expand this Nakagami imaging concept from 2D to 3D to fully characterize radiation-induced changes to the vaginal wall within the radiation treatment field. A pilot study with 5 post-radiotherapy GYN patients was conducted using a clinical ultrasound scanner (6 MHz) with a mechanical stepper. A serial of 2D ultrasound images, with radio-frequency (RF) signals, were acquired at 1 mm step size. The 2D Nakagami shape and PDF parameters were calculated from the RF signal envelope with a sliding window, and then 3D Nakagami parameter images were generated from the parallel 2D images. This imaging method may be useful as we try to monitor radiation-induced vaginal injury, and address vaginal toxicities and sexual dysfunction in women after radiotherapy for GYN malignancies.
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