Search

Background: Variable use of phrases expressing diagnostic uncertainty can lead to ambiguous radiology reports, a concern for information processing. Objective: This study aimed to quantify the usage of phrases conveying diagnostic certainty for abdominal imaging findings and assess factors that impact use of phrases with “good agreement” between radiologists and referring providers. Methods: This retrospective, Institutional Review Board-Approved study included all diagnostic reports generated by the Abdominal Radiology Division at an academic medical center July-September 2016. We assessed the use of 16 diagnostic certainty phrases using information retrieval from the Impression section of radiology reports. Phrases with good provider agreement for conveying the level of certainty are defined as “good agreement” phrases - including “diagnostic of”, “represents” and “unlikely.” We assessed the impact of imaging modality, trainee contribution to report generation, and individual radiologists. Results: In 5,598 radiology reports, 2,071 (37%) contained diagnostic certainty phrases, 119 (6%) of which were “good agreement” phrases. There was a significant difference between how frequently “good agreement” phrases were used in Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Computed Tomography (CT) and X-ray reports (p=0.0003). There was a significant variation among attending radiologists on the use of “good agreement” phrases (p Conclusion: Although phrases to convey diagnostic certainty were commonly used in radiology reports, the use of phrases with a good agreement was uncommon. Standardizing terminology to convey diagnostic certainty may reduce ambiguity in radiology reports and generate more accurate information processing tools.

Aminotransferase elevations have been described in patients with anorexia nervosa. Hypothesized etiologies have included ischemic hepatitis, refeeding-induced transaminitis, and the process of autophagy. Supervised enteral nutrition is the mainstay of treatment for severe anorexia, but an increase in aminotransferase levels after initiation of enteral feeding presents clinicians with a diagnostic dilemma. We present a 31-year-old woman with anorexia nervosa (body mass index [BMI] of 13.5 kg/m2) who experienced a worsening of aminotransferase elevations even after the initiation of enteral feeding. Despite nutritional supplementation, the patient’s weight continued to fall for 6 days. Peak aminotransferase concentrations correlated with the patient’s lowest weight and improved only after an increase in BMI was eventually achieved. Secondary causes of severe transaminitis were investigated, and after no cause was found, a liver biopsy was performed. Pathology was consistent with liver injury secondary to severe malnutrition rather than from refeeding syndrome. This case highlights malnutrition as an important cause of aminotransferase elevations and underscores the need for judicious early weight restoration in patients with anorexia and abnormal liver chemistry.

Trainees play an important role in the delivery of medical services in academic medical centers, yet the full extent of their contribution in radiology is unknown. The purpose of this study was to quantify trainee involvement in a single large academic radiology department.In this Institutional Review Board-approved retrospective study performed in a tertiary care academic medical center, we identified the proportion of radiology reports with trainee involvement (by means of report co-signature) between July 2015 and June 2016. For each exam, we documented the modality, whether a trainee co-signed the report, and the division/subspecialty of the attending radiologist. We computed the overall proportion of radiology reports that involved a trainee and compared this proportion between imaging modalities, type of patient setting (Emergency Department, inpatient, outpatient), and across subspecialty divisions using Chi-square tests.Overall, we analyzed 607,074 radiology reports, of which trainees co-signed 239,187 (39.4%) reports. Trainee involvement varied considerably by division, ranging from 7.1% (ultrasound division) to 99.2% (cardiovascular imaging division) of reports, P0.001. Among diagnostic imaging modalities, trainee participation was highest in CT (67.0%) and MRI (60.9%) examinations, and lowest in ultrasound (15.3%), P0.001. Trainees were more involved in the emergency department (58.0%) and inpatient (43.4%) settings than in the outpatient setting (33.9%), P0.001.Less than half of the imaging studies performed in an academic radiology department involved radiology trainees. Similar data and studies at other institutions may be useful to help define, monitor and improve optimal trainee education nationally.

Illicit drug use among adults is increasing, but its associated risk following orthopaedic trauma remains largely unexplored. This study assessed the relationship of illicit drug use with inpatient adverse events, in-hospital mortality, prolonged length of stay, and nonroutine discharge. With the use of the Nationwide Inpatient Sample database, 7,118,720 orthopaedic trauma inpatients from 2002 to 2011 were identified and separated into illicit drug users (1.5%) and non-illicit drug users (98.5%). Multivariable regression modeling was used to determine the association between illicit drug use and each outcome variable. Illicit drug use was associated with higher odds of inpatient adverse events, but not greater likelihood of inpatient death. Illicit drug users were also more likely to experience prolonged hospital stay and nonroutine discharge. Prompt recognition and effective treatment interventions for orthopaedic trauma patients with a history of illicit drug use may improve inpatient outcomes.