Structured reporting of computed tomography in the polytrauma patient assessment: a Delphi consensus proposal

Area of Science:

• Radiology
• Emergency Medicine
• Medical Informatics

Background:

• Polytrauma patients require rapid and accurate imaging assessment.
• Standardized reporting is crucial for effective communication in trauma care.
• Existing reporting methods for whole-body CT in polytrauma may lack consistency.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a consensus-based structured reporting (SR) template for whole-body CT examinations in polytrauma patients.
• To ensure the template meets the needs of emergency radiology and trauma teams.
• To improve the clarity and completeness of radiology reports in acute trauma settings.

Main Methods:

• A multi-round Delphi method was employed with a panel of emergency radiology experts.
• Inter-panelist agreement was quantified for all SR sections.
• Internal consistency and quality analysis were performed using Cronbach's alpha (Cα).

Main Results:

• The final SR template comprises 118 items across four sections: Patient Clinical Data, Clinical Evaluation, Imaging Protocol, and Report.
• Expert agreement significantly improved from the first to the second Delphi round (mean score 4.77 to 4.96, SD 19.71 to 3.11).
• High internal consistency was achieved, with Cronbach's alpha increasing from 0.87 to 0.97 between rounds.

Conclusions:

• The developed SR template for whole-body CT in polytrauma is supported by strong expert consensus.
• This standardized template has the potential to enhance communication between radiologists and trauma teams.
• Implementation of this SR template may lead to more efficient and effective trauma patient management.