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Purpose: Many practices have implemented support services to assist radiologists with noninterpretive tasks; however, little research has been performed to assess the overall effect of these services. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of a team of imaging service navigators (ISNs) incorporated into a practice on (1) number of communications, (2) time saved by radiologists, and (3) radiologist satisfaction with the service., Methods: The numbers and types of reports dictated by radiologists were captured for 6-month periods before and after ISN implementation. Communication rates before and after implementation were then calculated. The amount of perceived time savings using the ISN team and satisfaction with the service were assessed through pre- and postimplementation surveys of participating radiologists. Mean and median time savings and satisfaction rates were calculated., Results: The overall communication rate increased from 2.196% before ISNs to 3.278% after ISNs (49% increase; 95% confidence interval, 47%-52%). Communication rates increased among all communication subtypes (critical, urgent, routine, and actionable), with the highest increases in urgent (94%) and actionable (75%) findings. Before implementation, radiologists reported spending 39 min on average per day on communications tasks, with only 33% of radiologists indicating that the communication process was efficient. After implementation, radiologists reported mean time savings of 28 min (95% confidence interval, 19.9-35.1), and 82% of radiologists indicated a positive or highly positive view of the ISN service., Conclusions: After ISN implementation, communication rates increased and radiologists reported spending less time performing communications. Most radiologists were satisfied with the service., (Copyright © 2022 American College of Radiology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Competing Interests: Disclosure The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.

Chronic hand and wrist pain is a common presenting complaint. The intricate anatomy results in a variety of pain generators—multiple bones, articular cartilage, intrinsic ligaments, triangular fibrocartilage complex, joint capsules and synovium, tendons and tendon sheaths, muscles, and nerves—in a compact space. The need for imaging and the choice of the appropriate imaging modality are best determined by the patient's presentation, physical examination, and the clinician's working differential diagnosis. Radiography is usually appropriate as the initial imaging study in the evaluation of chronic hand or wrist pain. The American College of Radiology Appropriateness Criteria are evidence-based guidelines for specific clinical conditions that are reviewed annually by a multidisciplinary expert panel. The guideline development and revision process support the systematic analysis of the medical literature from peer reviewed journals. Established methodology principles such as Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation or GRADE are adapted to evaluate the evidence. The RAND/UCLA Appropriateness Method User Manual provides the methodology to determine the appropriateness of imaging and treatment procedures for specific clinical scenarios. In those instances where peer reviewed literature is lacking or equivocal, experts may be the primary evidentiary source available to formulate a recommendation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chronic hip pain is a frequent chief complaint for adult patients who present for evaluation in a variety of clinical practice settings. Following a targeted history and physical examination, imaging plays a vital role in elucidating the etiologies of a patient's symptoms, as a wide spectrum of pathological entities may cause chronic hip pain. Radiography is usually the appropriate initial imaging test following a clinical examination. Depending on the clinical picture, advanced cross-sectional imaging may be subsequently performed for further evaluation. This documents provides best practice for the imaging workup of chronic hip pain in patients presenting with a variety of clinical scenarios. The American College of Radiology Appropriateness Criteria are evidence-based guidelines for specific clinical conditions that are reviewed annually by a multidisciplinary expert panel. The guideline development and revision include an extensive analysis of current medical literature from peer reviewed journals and the application of well-established methodologies (RAND/UCLA Appropriateness Method and Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation or GRADE) to rate the appropriateness of imaging and treatment procedures for specific clinical scenarios. In those instances where evidence is lacking or equivocal, expert opinion may supplement the available evidence to recommend imaging or treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To determine whether a simulated low-dose metal artifact reduction (MAR) CT technique is comparable with a clinical dose MAR technique for shoulder arthroplasty evaluation. Materials and methods: Two shoulder arthroplasties in cadavers and 25 shoulder arthroplasties in patients were scanned using a clinical dose (140 kVp, 300 qrmAs); cadavers were also scanned at half dose (140 kVp, 150 qrmAs). Images were reconstructed using a MAR CT algorithm at full dose and a noise-insertion algorithm simulating 50% dose reduction. For the actual and simulated half-dose cadaver scans, differences in SD for regions of interest were assessed, and streak artifact near the arthroplasty was graded by 3 blinded readers. Simulated half-dose scans were compared with full-dose scans in patients by measuring differences in implant position and by comparing readers' grades of periprosthetic osteolysis and muscle atrophy. Results: The mean difference in SD between actual and simulated half-dose methods was 2.42 HU (95% CI [1.4, 3.4]). No differences in streak artifact grades were seen in 13/18 (72.2%) comparisons in cadavers. In patients, differences in implant position measurements were within 1° or 1 mm in 149/150 (99.3%) measurements. The inter-reader agreement rates were nearly identical when readers were using full-dose (77.3% [232/300] for osteolysis and 76.9% [173/225] for muscle atrophy) and simulated half-dose (76.7% [920/1200] for osteolysis and 74.0% [666/900] for muscle atrophy) scans. Conclusion: A simulated half-dose MAR CT technique is comparable both quantitatively and qualitatively with a standard-dose technique for shoulder arthroplasty evaluation, demonstrating that this technique could be used to reduce dose in arthroplasty imaging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three-dimensional (3D) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the knee is widely used in musculoskeletal (MSK) imaging. Currently, 3D sequences are most commonly used for morphological imaging. Isotropic 3D MRI provides higher out-of-plane resolution than standard two-dimensional (2D) MRI, leading to reduced partial volume averaging artifacts and allowing for multiplanar reconstructions in any plane with any thickness from a single high-resolution isotropic acquisition. Specifically, isotropic 3D fast spin-echo imaging, with options for tissue weighting similar to those used in multiplanar 2D FSE imaging, is of particular interest to MSK radiologists. New applications for 3D spatially encoded sequences are also increasingly available for clinical use. These applications offer advantages over standard 2D techniques for metal artifact reduction, quantitative cartilage imaging, nerve imaging, and bone shape analysis. Emerging fast imaging techniques can be used to overcome the long acquisition times that have limited the adoption of 3D imaging in clinical protocols. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chronic foot pain is a frequent clinical complaint, which can significantly impact the quality of live in some individuals. These guidelines define best practices with regards to requisition of imaging studies based on specific clinical scenarios, which have been grouped into different variants. Each variant is accompanied by a brief description of the usefulness, advantages, and limitations of different imaging modalities. The present narrative is the result of an exhaustive assessment of the available literature and a thorough review process by a panel of experts on Musculoskeletal Imaging. The American College of Radiology Appropriateness Criteria are evidence-based guidelines for specific clinical conditions that are reviewed annually by a multidisciplinary expert panel. The guideline development and revision include an extensive analysis of current medical literature from peer reviewed journals and the application of well-established methodologies (RAND/UCLA Appropriateness Method and Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation or GRADE) to rate the appropriateness of imaging and treatment procedures for specific clinical scenarios. In those instances where evidence is lacking or equivocal, expert opinion may supplement the available evidence to recommend imaging or treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chronic foot pain is a frequent clinical complaint, which can significantly impact the quality of live in some individuals. These guidelines define best practices with regards to requisition of imaging studies based on specific clinical scenarios, which have been grouped into different variants. Each variant is accompanied by a brief description of the usefulness, advantages, and limitations of different imaging modalities. The present narrative is the result of an exhaustive assessment of the available literature and a thorough review process by a panel of experts on Musculoskeletal Imaging. The American College of Radiology Appropriateness Criteria are evidence-based guidelines for specific clinical conditions that are reviewed annually by a multidisciplinary expert panel. The guideline development and revision include an extensive analysis of current medical literature from peer reviewed journals and the application of well-established methodologies (RAND/UCLA Appropriateness Method and Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation or GRADE) to rate the appropriateness of imaging and treatment procedures for specific clinical scenarios. In those instances where evidence is lacking or equivocal, expert opinion may supplement the available evidence to recommend imaging or treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biostatistics is an essential component in most original research studies in imaging. In this article we discuss five key statistical concepts for study design and analyses in modern imaging research: statistical hypothesis testing, particularly focusing on noninferiority studies; imaging outcomes especially when there is no reference standard; dealing with the multiplicity problem without spending all your study power; relevance of confidence intervals in reporting and interpreting study results; and finally tools for assessing quantitative imaging biomarkers. These concepts are presented first as examples of conversations between investigator and biostatistician, and then more detailed discussions of the statistical concepts follow. Three skeletal radiology examples are used to illustrate the concepts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chronic hip pain is a common clinical problem whose cause is often elucidated by imaging. The ACR Appropriateness Criteria for chronic hip pain define best practices of image ordering. Clinical scenarios are followed by the imaging choices and their appropriateness. The information is in ordered tables with an accompanying narrative explanation to guide physicians to order the right test. The American College of Radiology Appropriateness Criteria are evidence-based guidelines for specific clinical conditions that are reviewed annually by a multidisciplinary expert panel. The guideline development and revision include an extensive analysis of current medical literature from peer-reviewed journals and the application of well-established methodologies (RAND/UCLA Appropriateness Method and Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation or GRADE) to rate the appropriateness of imaging and treatment procedures for specific clinical scenarios. In those instances where evidence is lacking or equivocal, expert opinion may supplement the available evidence to recommend imaging or treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]