Breast imagers have long been interested in correlating imaging findings with pathology results, according to Dr. Erin Crane of MedStar Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, DC. For every breast biopsy performed, imaging characteristics are reviewed to assess concordance, and the original procedure report is addended accordingly.
"At MedStar Georgetown, we developed a user-friendly, semi-intelligent radiology-pathology correlation system [that] notifies the proceduralist once pathology results are finalized," she told AuntMinnie.com.
The researchers wanted to see if their RadPath notification system would provide added value over the manual retrieval process for radiology-pathology correlation. They chose to analyze turnaround time from finalized procedure report to addended report, as expeditious notification and documentation of these results are important for patients and referring clinicians, as well as for quality assurance purposes, Crane noted.
"Our automated RadPath system was successful in decreasing the turnaround time from procedure report finalization to pathology addendum for image-guided breast biopsies," she said. "This is significant because timely notification and documentation of pathology results and establishment of radiologic-pathologic concordance are crucial for patient care and quality assurance -- and will likely also result in increased patient and referring clinician satisfaction."
How did the team achieve these results? Visit this exhibit at McCormick Place for all the details.
