Patient-Assisted Compression in Screening Mammography: Patient Experience and Image Quality.

Area of Science:

• Radiology
• Medical Imaging
• Breast Cancer Screening

Background:

• Screening mammography is crucial for reducing breast cancer mortality.
• Patient-reported pain from compression is a significant barrier to mammography adherence.
• Novel compression methods are needed to improve patient experience.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate patient experience and image quality using a handheld patient-assisted compression (PAC) device.
• To compare PAC with traditional technologist-controlled (TC) compression.

Main Methods:

• A comparative study involving women undergoing screening mammography with either PAC or TC.
• Evaluation of patient experience via surveys, and objective measures including image quality, compression force, thickness, and radiation dose.
• Statistical analysis using multivariable regression models and comparative tests.

Main Results:

• 73% of women preferred the PAC experience over prior TC mammograms.
• PAC use was associated with decreased patient anxiety compared to TC.
• No significant differences were found in image quality, compression thickness, or average glandular dose between PAC and TC.
• PAC resulted in significantly higher compression force than TC.

Conclusions:

• Handheld patient-assisted compression (PAC) mammography enhances patient experience and reduces anxiety.
• PAC achieves comparable image quality to technologist-controlled (TC) compression.
• PAC is a viable alternative for improving mammography screening adherence.