Communicating Uncertainty in the Radiology Report

The purposes of this article are to explore the issue of diagnostic uncertainty in radiology and how the radiology report has often fallen short in this regard and to suggest approaches that can be helpful in addressing this challenge.

The practice of medicine involves a great deal of uncertainty, which is an uncomfortable reality for most physicians. Radiologists are more often than not faced with considerable diagnostic uncertainty and in their written reports are challenged to effectively communicate that uncertainty to referring physicians and others.