Confidence Intervals and Sample Size Calculations for Studies of Film-reading Performance

The relaxation of restrictions on the type of professions that can report films has resulted in radiographers and other healthcare professionals becoming increasingly involved in image interpretation in areas such as mammography, ultrasound and plain-film radiography. Little attention, however, has...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Clinical Radiology 2003-03, Vol.58 (3), p.238-246
Main Authors: Scally, A.J, Brealey, S
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biological and medical sciences
Clinical Competence - standards
Confidence Intervals
film-reading performance
Humans
Investigative techniques, diagnostic techniques (general aspects)
Medical sciences
Medical Staff, Hospital - standards
Miscellaneous. Technology
Radiodiagnosis. Nmr imagery. Nmr spectrometry
Radiography - standards
Sample Size
Sensitivity and Specificity
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Summary:The relaxation of restrictions on the type of professions that can report films has resulted in radiographers and other healthcare professionals becoming increasingly involved in image interpretation in areas such as mammography, ultrasound and plain-film radiography. Little attention, however, has been given to sample size determinations concerning film-reading performance characteristics such as sensitivity, specificity and accuracy. Illustrated with hypothetical examples, this paper begins by considering standard errors and confidence intervals for performance characteristics and then discusses methods for determining sample size for studies of film-reading performance. Used appropriately, these approaches should result in studies that produce estimates of film-reading performance with adequate precision and enable investigators to optimize the sample size in their studies for the question they seek to answer. Scally, A. J. and Brealey S. (2003). Clinical Radiology 58, 238–246.
ISSN:0009-9260
1365-229X
DOI:10.1016/S0009-9260(02)00457-9