Previously, the group applied this protocol to examine air around a knee joint where infections easily could develop. Its application was so successful that the researchers set out to use the protocol to reduce radiation for traumatic joint fractures, such as those caused by a car accident or fall.
Between August 2014 and March 2015, 50 patients showing clinical symptoms of joint fractures received ultra-low dose radiation CT scans. Images from these ultra-low dose CT scans were compared to a sample of age-matched, similar fracture injuries where patients were evaluated with a standard CT scan.
Ad Statistics
Times Displayed: 22281
Times Visited: 445 Stay up to date with the latest training to fix, troubleshoot, and maintain your critical care devices. GE HealthCare offers multiple training formats to empower teams and expand knowledge, saving you time and money
The results were impressive: researchers achieved 98-percent sensitivity and 89 percent specificity with the ultra-low dose CT scans. In other words, if a person has a joint fracture, it would be detected on the ultra-low dose CT scan 98 percent of the time, while a negative finding - no fracture having occurred -- was determined 89 percent of the time. Equally important, these findings were comparable to the conventional CT-scans (98 percent sensitivity and 85 percent specificity with occult fractures removed). Image quality was rated moderate to near perfect by the orthopaedic surgeons.
"The ability to perform ultra-low dose radiation CT scans without compromising image quality demonstrates the comprehensive capabilities of this protocol," says senior study author Kenneth A. Egol, MD, professor of orthopaedic surgery and chief of the division of orthopaedic trauma surgery at NYU Langone. "Patients who undergo a traumatic injury or suspected fracture have enough to worry about. Our research makes radiation exposure among the least of their concerns."
Next, the researchers will continue to follow-up patients who underwent the ultra-low dose CT scans to ensure patient outcomes haven't changed in the hopes of expanding the protocol to other departments.
###
In addition to Drs. Konda, Egol and Gyftopoulos, NYU Langone researchers included Abraham Goch, BS; Philipp Leucht, MD, PhD; Anthony Christiano, BA, and Gideon Yoeli, MD, provided support from Jamaica Hospital Medical Center.
Back to HCB News
