Visual Gaze Patterns in the Analysis of Glottic Lesions: Does Experience Increase Diagnostic Accuracy?

Area of Science:

• Otolaryngology
• Medical Education
• Ophthalmology

Background:

• Accurate diagnosis of vocal cord lesions relies on visual interpretation.
• Experience level may influence diagnostic accuracy and visual search strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate visual gaze patterns and cancer identification accuracy in vocal cord lesions across different experience levels.
• To determine if visual search strategies differ between novices and experts when assessing vocal cord pathology.

Main Methods:

• Thirty-one participants (novice to expert) viewed vocal cord pathology images.
• Participants rated the likelihood of cancer.
• Eye-tracking data collected to analyze fixation patterns (first, longest, most).

Main Results:

• No significant differences in visual gaze targets (area of interest) were observed among experience groups.
• Novice participants were significantly more likely to underestimate cancer risk in infectious laryngitis compared to experienced groups.
• Cancer likelihood ratings for other lesions did not differ significantly by experience level.

Conclusions:

• Visual search patterns do not significantly differ across experience levels when evaluating vocal cord pathology.
• The similar appearance of benign and malignant lesions may explain diagnostic discrepancies.
• Further research with larger cohorts is needed to refine understanding of gaze patterns in vocal cord lesion diagnosis.