Best poster award: accuracy of surgery residents' interpretation of computed tomography scans in trauma.
BACKGROUND
We evaluated the accuracy of surgery residents in interpreting computed axial tomography (CT) scans of trauma patients as compared with attending radiologists.


METHODS
Residents listed injuries they identified on initial CT scans of trauma patients in a time-stamped computerized system before the official report becoming available. Head, chest, and abdomen/pelvis CT scans were included. We compared the accuracy of these reads with final radiology reports.


RESULTS
There were 84 injuries in 31 patients. Residents correctly identified 25 of 26 (96%) injuries to the head, 28 of 42 (67%) chest injuries, and 15 of 16 (94%) injuries to the abdomen and pelvis. The accuracy of resident reads of chest CT scans was lower (P = .035) than for other body areas. Radiologists' identified 23 of 26 (89%) head injuries, 38 of 42 (90%) chest injuries, and 14 of 16 (88%) injuries in the abdomen and pelvis CT scans. None of the missed injuries were life threatening or required immediate attention.


CONCLUSIONS
Surgical residents accurately identify acute injuries on the CT scans of trauma victims.
Arentz
Candy
C
Department of Surgery, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, 3601 4th Street, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA.
Griswold
John A
JA
Halldorsson
Ari
A
Quattromani
Frank
F
Dissanaike
Sharmila
S
D000007:Abdominal Injuries / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002983:Clinical Competence / Q000592:standards*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D007396:Internship and Residency; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010388:Pelvis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000293:injuries*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011871:Radiology / Q000193:education*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013898:Thoracic Injuries / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods*; D015599:Trauma Severity Indices; D055815:Young Adult