A COMPARATIVE PROSPECTIVE STUDY OF EFFICACY OF STRUCTURED REPORTING-A METHOD TO ENHANCE REPORTING QUALITY IN ESOPHAGEAL CARCINOMA.

Abstract

Background 

Accurate assessment of the stage of esophageal cancer aids in devising an efficient treatment plan for treating patients with esophageal carcinoma. The structured reporting format of the computed tomography scanning improves the efficiency over the descriptive reporting format. This study aims to determine the efficiency of the structured reporting format over the descriptive reporting format in esophageal carcinoma.

Methods

A comparative prospective study was carried out in which two radiologists were recruited. One individual was tasked with creating descriptive reports, while the other was assigned to create reports in a standardised manner. the data of each patient was written in both formats. Subsequently, 50 surgeons were requested to evaluate the reports and provide their feedback on both report formats.

Results

50 surgeons stated that the extraction of the data regarding esophageal carcinoma was easier in the case of structured reports. 49 out of 50 surgeons stated that it was time time-saving methodology. 50 out of 50 surgeons were more confident in devising an accurate treatment plan after the assessment of the structured reports than that of the descriptive reports.

Conclusion

Scanning of computed tomography helps in determining the stage of esophageal carcinoma and devising a treatment plan accordingly. The reporting format plays an important role in the efficient extraction of data and the devising of an accurate treatment plan. The structured report format is found to be superior to the conventional descriptive format in this study.

Recommendation

Radiologists should focus on filling each minute and significant detail in a structured report format rather than reporting it in a descriptive format.