Head-mounted versus remote eye tracking of radiologists searching for breast cancer: a comparison

We compared performance and visual search parameters of radiologists detecting masses on mammograms by using both a head-mounted (HDMT) and a remote (REM) eye tracker.

Five experienced radiologists read twice a case set of 20 one-view (medial-lateral oblique) mammograms, of which 12 contained a malignant mass and eight were lesion-free. For each observer, one trial used an HDMT eye-tracking system and the other used an REM system. Trials were separated on average by 2 months. Time to hit the location of the mass, dwell, and number of fixations in the location of the mass were measured. The same parameters were measured on a per-trial basis to determine whether there were memory effects from the previous trial.

Dwell times in the location of true-positive, false-positive, and false-negative results were significantly shorter (P < .05) using the HDMT (median, 0.395 seconds) than REM (median, 0.482 seconds) systems, but the number of fixations in the location of the response was smaller using the REM system (median, 4.33 versus 5.0 for the HDMT). The observed differences did not seem to be caused by a memory effect. In addition, the relative lack of head mobility using the REM system caused observers to report neck strain.

Overall, radiologists' visual search behavior was very similar using both types of eye-tracking device. However, because the REM system did not contain a magnetic head tracker, radiologists were allowed very limited head movements when using it, which made them uncomfortable during the experiment.