Why Does It Take Longer to Read Digital Than Film-Screen Screening Mammograms? A Partial Explanation

Digital screening mammograms (DM) take longer to interpret than film-screen screening mammograms (FSM). We evaluated what part of the process takes long in our reading environment. We selected cases from those for which timed readings had been performed as part of a previous study. Readers were time...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of digital imaging 2010-04, Vol.23 (2), p.170-180
Main Authors: Haygood, Tamara Miner, Wang, Jihong, Lane, Deanna, Galvan, Eva, Neely Atkinson, E., Stephens, Tanya, Whitman, Gary J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Breast Neoplasms - diagnostic imaging
Breast Neoplasms - epidemiology
Cohort Studies
Female
Humans
Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted
Imaging
Mammography - instrumentation
Mammography - methods
Mass Screening - instrumentation
Mass Screening - methods
Medicine
Medicine & Public Health
Practice Patterns, Physicians
Radiographic Image Enhancement
Radiographic Magnification
Radiology
Risk Assessment
Sensitivity and Specificity
Time Factors
X-Ray Film
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Summary:Digital screening mammograms (DM) take longer to interpret than film-screen screening mammograms (FSM). We evaluated what part of the process takes long in our reading environment. We selected cases from those for which timed readings had been performed as part of a previous study. Readers were timed as they performed various computer manipulations on groups of DM cases and as they moved the alternator and adjusted lighting and manual shutters for FSM cases. Subtracting manipulation time from the original interpretation times yielded estimated times to reach a decision. Manipulation times for DM ranged from a low of 11 s when four-view DM were simply opened and closed in a 4-on-1 hanging protocol before moving on to the next study to 113.8 s when each view of six-view DM were brought up 1-on-1, enlarged to 100% resolution, and panned through. Manipulation times for groups of FSM ranged from 8.3 to 12.1 s. Estimated decision-making times for DM ranged from 128.0 to 202.2 s, while estimated decision-making time for FSM ranged from 60.9 to 146.3 s. Computer manipulation time partially explains the discrepancy in interaction times between DM and FSM. Radiologists also appear to spend more time looking at DM than at FSM before making a decision.
ISSN:0897-1889
1618-727X
DOI:10.1007/s10278-009-9177-9