The following is the summary of “All-in-one” window/level whole-body computed tomography scan – A faster way to evaluate trauma cases” published in the December 2022 issue of Emergency medicine by Longo et al.
The purpose of this study is to compare a single “All-in-one” (AIO) window/level setting for a whole-body computed tomography (CT) image to the multiple tissue-specific window/level settings that are currently used to detect traumatic injuries, and to determine which setting is more accurate and how much time it saves during the assessment process. About 50 patients who had been to their Emergency departments (ED) after suffering serious trauma were selected retrospectively based on their contrast-enhanced CT scans of the chest, abdomen, and pelvis.
About 6 readers with varying degrees of experience pretended to perform a “wet read” at the CT scanner console and were given up to 3 minutes to explain any disturbing discovery found on the CTs. To avoid any memory lapses from one reading to the next, the readers went over each patient twice, with a washout period in between. Every scan was looked at twice, once with the AIO-window/level display and once with the regular bone, lung, and soft tissue settings. A benchmark was established using the CT reports. Both the AIO and the traditional window/level settings yielded similarly accurate evaluations (0.89 ± 0.09 vs. 0.90 ± 0.08, respectively).
When comparing the AIO-window/level settings to the traditional window/level settings, researchers found that the former resulted in a 14.3-s reduction in TAT (2.33 ± 0.63 vs. 2.57±0.51 min; P<0.001). With the AIO, the same diagnostic accuracy was achieved in less time compared to the traditional window/level settings in a time-limited image review. The ability to identify traumatic injury utilizing a single AIO-window/level at the CT console, when providing a “wet read,” may facilitate rapid patient care.
Source: sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0735675722006283
