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Right lower quadrant (RLQ) pain is a common clinical presentation in children, and accurate clinical diagnosis remains challenging given that this nonspecific presentation is associated with numerous surgical and nonsurgical conditions. The broad differential diagnosis varies by patient age and sex. Importance considerations in selection of a diagnostic imaging strategy include tests' sequencing, performance, and cost. This article provides a comprehensive narrative review on the diagnostic imaging of RLQ pain in children and adolescents, including discussion of the complementary roles of ultrasound, CT, and MRI; description of key imaging findings based on the available evidence; and presentation of salient differential diagnoses. Subspecialized pediatric emergency medicine and surgical perspectives are also provided as further clinical insight on this common, but often challenging, scenario. Finally, the current status of imaging of RLQ pain in children and adolescents is summarized based on expert consensus.

The purpose of this study was to develop and test a standardized communication skills assessment instrument for radiology.The Delphi method was used to validate the Kalamazoo Communication Skills Assessment instrument for radiology by revising and achieving consensus on the 43 items of the preexisting instrument among an interdisciplinary team of experts consisting of five radiologists and four nonradiologists (two men, seven women). Reviewers assessed the applicability of the instrument to evaluation of conversations between radiology trainees and trained actors portraying concerned parents in enactments about bad news, radiation risks, and diagnostic errors that were video recorded during a communication workshop. Interrater reliability was assessed by use of the revised instrument to rate a series of enactments between trainees and actors video recorded in a hospital-based simulator center. Eight raters evaluated each of seven different video-recorded interactions between physicians and parent-actors.The final instrument contained 43 items. After three review rounds, 42 of 43 (98%) items had an average rating of relevant or very relevant for bad news conversations. All items were rated as relevant or very relevant for conversations about error disclosure and radiation risk. Reliability and rater agreement measures were moderate. The intraclass correlation coefficient range was 0.07-0.58; mean, 0.30; SD, 0.13; and median, 0.30. The range of weighted kappa values was 0.03-0.47; mean, 0.23; SD, 0.12; and median, 0.22. Ratings varied significantly among conversations (χThe adapted communication skills assessment instrument is highly relevant for radiology, having moderate interrater reliability. These findings have important implications for assessing the relational competencies of radiology trainees.

OBJECTIVE. Enteric contrast media are commonly administered for diagnostic cross-sectional imaging studies in the pediatric population. The purpose of this manuscript is to review the use of enteric contrast media for CT, MRI, and ultrasound in infants, children, and adolescents and to share our experiences at a large tertiary care pediatric teaching hospital. CONCLUSION. The use of enteric contrast material for diagnostic imaging in infants and children continues to evolve with advances in imaging technology and available enteric contrast media. Many principles of enteric contrast use in pediatric imaging are similar to those in adult imaging, but important differences must be kept in mind when imaging the gastrointestinal tract in infants and children, and practical ways to optimize the imaging examination and the patient experience should be employed where possible.

OBJECTIVE. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of a nominal 50% reduction in median absorbed radiation dose on sensitivity, specificity, and negative appendectomy rate of CT for acute appendicitis in children. MATERIALS AND METHODS. On the basis of a departmental practice quality improvement initiative using computer-generated gaussian noise for CT dose reduction, we applied a nominal dose reduction of 50% to abdominal CT techniques used for bowel imaging. This retrospective study consisted of 494 children who underwent a CT for suspected acute appendicitis before (n = 244; mean age, 133 months) and after (n = 250; mean age, 145 months) the nominal 50% dose reduction. Test performance characteristics of CT for acute appendicitis and impact on the negative appendectomy rate were compared for both time periods. Primary analyses were performed with histologic diagnosis as the outcome standard. Volume CT dose index and dose-length product were recorded from dose reports and size-specific dose estimates were calculated. RESULTS. The nominal 50% dose reduction resulted in an actual 39% decrease in median absorbed radiation dose. Sensitivity of CT for diagnosis of acute appendicitis was 98% (95% CI, 91-100%) versus 97% (91-100%), and specificity was 93% (88-96%) versus 94% (90-97%) before and after dose reduction, respectively. The negative appendectomy rate was 4.5% (0.8-10.25%) before dose reduction and 4.0% (0.4-7.6%) after dose reduction. CONCLUSION. The negative appendectomy rate and performance characteristics of the CT-based diagnosis of acute appendicitis were not affected by a 39% reduction in median absorbed radiation dose.

The purpose of this study was to develop a departmental practice quality improvement project to systematically reduce CT doses for the evaluation of suspected pediatric appendicitis by introducing computer-generated gaussian noise.Two hundred MDCT abdominopelvic examinations of patients younger than 20 years performed with girth-based scanning parameters for suspected appendicitis were reviewed. Two judges selected 45 examinations in which the diagnosis of appendicitis was excluded (14, appendix not visualized; 31, normal appendix visualized). Gaussian noise was introduced into axial image series, creating five additional series acquired at 25-76% of the original dose. Two readers reviewed 270 image series for appendix visualization (4-point Likert scale and arrow localization). Volume CT dose index (CTDIvol) and size-specific dose estimate (SSDE) were calculated by use of patient girth. Confidence ratings and localization accuracy were analyzed with mixed models and nonparametric bootstrap analysis at a 0.05 significance level.The mean baseline SSDE for the 45 patients was 16 mGy (95% CI, 12-20 mGy), and the corresponding CTDIvol was 10 mGy (95% CI, 4-16 mGy). Changes in correct appendix localization frequencies were minor. There was no substantial trend with decreasing simulated dose level (p = 0.46). Confidence ratings decreased with increasing dose reduction (p = 0.007). The average decreases were -0.27 for the 25% simulated dose (p = 0.01), -0.17 for 33% (p = 0.03), and -0.03 for 43% (p = 0.65).Pediatric abdominal MDCT can be performed with 43% of the original dose (SSDE, 7 mGy; CTDIvol, 4.3 mGy) without substantially affecting visualization of a normal appendix.

There are limited data available on the use of i.v. contrast media for CT studies in the pediatric population. The purpose of this study is to determine the practice patterns of i.v. contrast media usage for pediatric CT by members of the Society for Pediatric Radiology (SPR).SPR members were surveyed regarding the use of i.v. contrast media for pediatric CT studies. Questions pertained to information required before administering i.v. contrast media, types of central catheters for injecting i.v. contrast media, injection rates based on angiocatheter size and study type, and management of i.v. contrast media extravasation.The response rate of 6% (88/1545) represented practice patterns of 26% (401/1545) of the SPR membership. Most respondents thought the following clinical information was mandatory before i.v. contrast media administration: allergy to i.v. contrast media (97%), renal insufficiency (97%), current metformin use (72%), significant allergies (61%), diabetes (54%), and asthma (52%). Most administered i.v. contrast media through nonimplanted central venous catheters (78%), implanted venous ports (78%), and peripherally inserted central catheters (72%). The most common maximum i.v. contrast media injection rates were 5.0 mL/s or greater for a 16-gauge angiocatheter, 4.0 mL/s for an 18-gauge angiocatheter, 3.0 mL/s for a 20-gauge angiocatheter, and 2.0 mL/s for a 22-gauge angiocatheter. For soft-tissue extravasation of i.v. contrast media, 95% elevate the affected extremity, 76% use ice, and 45% use heat.The results of this survey illustrate the collective opinion of a subset of SPR members relating to the use of i.v. contrast media in pediatric CT, providing guidelines for clinical histories needed before i.v. contrast media, maximum i.v. contrast injection rates for standard angiocatheters, contrast media injection rates for specific CT studies, and management of i.v. contrast media soft-tissue extravasation.

AJR:194, April 2010 This article suggests 10 steps that radiologists and radiologic technologists, with the assistance of their medical physicist, can take to obtain good quality CT images while properly managing radiation dose for children undergoing CT. The first six steps ideally should be completed before performing any CT on a pediatric patient. The final four steps address the unique consideration that should be given for each scanned patient.

OBJECTIVE. Our purpose was to evaluate the imaging characteristics and clinical outcomes of children less than 5 years old who underwent surgery for presumed appendicitis.CONCLUSION. Appendicitis is not rare in young children and imaging findings reflect the high frequency of perforation in this population.

OBJECTIVE. The purpose of this article is to present the imaging appearance of common mimickers of appendicitis in children with right lower quadrant pain.CONCLUSION. The majority of children who undergo imaging for suspected appendicitis will end up having an alternative diagnosis. These mimickers can be gastrointestinal, genitourinary, or pulmonary. Familiarity with these alternative diagnoses can aid in the challenging task of imaging right lower quadrant pain in the pediatric population.

1All authors: Department of Radiology, Children’s Hospital Boston and Harvard Medical School, 300 Longwood Ave., Boston, MA 02115. Address correspondence to E. Y. Lee (Edward.Lee@childrens.harvard.edu). esmoplastic small round cell tumor (DSRCT) is a rare, high-grade, malignant neoplasm usually seen in children, adolescents, and young adults, where it has an aggressive clinical course [1–5]. It is typically an intraabdominal tumor associated with serosal surfaces and unusual locations (e.g., serosal surfaces of the pleura, scrotum, and ovary) have been reported [1, 2, 6, 7]. To our knowledge, a single case of DSRCT of the kidney was recently reported in an adult male patient [6]. However, DSRCT of the kidney in pediatric patients and its sonographic and CT characteristics in pediatric and adult populations have not been reported. We present a case of DSRCT of the kidney in a 6year-old girl who was evaluated with renal sonography and multiphase CT.