title: Virtual sonography for novice sonographers: usefulness of SYNAPSE VINCENT® with pre-check imaging of tumor location.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the usefulness of a virtual ultrasound (US) imaging device as a tool to assist novice sonographers.
  
  
  METHODS
  A prospective blinded pilot study was conducted involving patients with liver lesions. Two sonographers and 2 medical doctors with less than 5 years of experience performed US examinations. The time needed to detect liver lesions on US and the success rate for detecting liver lesions with and without using the virtual US imaging device SYNAPSE VINCENT® (Fujifilm Medical Co., Tokyo, Japan) before US examination were evaluated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Thirty-two patients with the following 42 liver lesions were included: liver cyst (n = 24), hemangioma (n = 8), hepatocellular carcinoma (n = 6), and liver metastasis (n = 4). The maximal diameter of these lesions ranged from 0.3 to 1.5 cm (mean ± SD, 0.8 ± 0.4). The average time for detecting liver lesions on US was 47.8 s (range, 7-113) with VINCENT and 112.9 s (range, 14-313) without VINCENT before US examination. There were significant differences in the duration of US examination with and without VINCENT (p = 0.0002, Student's t test). The rates for accurately detecting liver lesions were 100 and 76.2% (16/21) in US beginners with and without VINCENT, respectively. Significantly higher detection rates were found in the US beginners who used VINCENT compared to those who did not use VINCENT (p = 0.047, Fisher's exact test).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Before US examination, a reference with VINCENT could contribute to the successful detection of liver lesions and could be time-saving for US beginners.
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Kinki University School of Medicine, Osaka-Sayama, Japan.
authors.forename: Chikara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ogawa
authors.forename: Yasunori
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Minami
authors.forename: Yumiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Morioka
authors.forename: Akiyo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Noda
authors.forename: Soichi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Arasawa
authors.forename: Masako
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Izuta
authors.forename: Atsushi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kubo
authors.forename: Toshihiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Matsunaka
authors.forename: Noriyuki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Tamaki
authors.forename: Mitsushige
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shibatouge
authors.forename: Masatoshi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kudo
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D003560:Cysts / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007089:Image Enhancement; D007564:Japan; D059032:Learning Curve; D008107:Liver Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011446:Prospective Studies; D013997:Time Factors; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D014463:Ultrasonography / Q000295:instrumentation; D014584:User-Computer Interface