Radiologist agreement on the quantification of bronchiectasis by high-resolution computed tomography

Area of Science:

• Radiology
• Pulmonology
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Bronchiectasis diagnosis and monitoring rely heavily on high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT).
• Quantifying HRCT findings in bronchiectasis presents challenges in achieving consistent radiologist interpretation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the level of agreement among radiologists in quantifying bronchiectasis features on HRCT.
• To evaluate the impact of a standardized scoring system on radiologist agreement for HRCT-based bronchiectasis assessment.

Main Methods:

• Two radiologists independently reviewed HRCT scans from 43 bronchiectasis patients.
• A scoring system was applied to grade various HRCT findings.
• Interobserver and intraobserver agreement were calculated using Kappa (κ) values and correlation coefficients.

Main Results:

• Moderate agreement was observed for bronchiectasis measurement (κ=0.45) and appearance (κ=0.43).
• Fair agreement was noted for mucous plugging, peribronchial thickening, opacities, ground-glass attenuation, and cysts/bullae.
• Excellent correlation (ICC=0.85 interobserver, 0.81 intraobserver) was achieved when analyzing qualitative HRCT findings using the proposed scoring system.

Conclusions:

• Individual radiologist agreement on specific HRCT findings for bronchiectasis is fair.
• A structured scoring system substantially enhances interobserver and intraobserver agreement in the interpretation of HRCT for bronchiectasis.