Related Experiment Videos
Physicians' abdominal auscultation. A multi-rater agreement study
J Gade1, P Kruse, O T Andersen
1Dept. of Surgical Gastroenterology D2, Copenhagen County's Glostrup Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Scandinavian Journal of Gastroenterology
|August 26, 1998
Summary
Rater agreement for abdominal auscultation is acceptable in healthy subjects and intestinal obstruction cases. This physical examination remains valuable for diagnosing acute abdominal pain.
Area of Science:
- Medical Diagnostics
- Physical Examination Techniques
Background:
- Abdominal auscultation is a key component of abdominal physical examinations.
- Limited data exists on the consistency of findings among different healthcare providers.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess inter-rater reliability in abdominal auscultation.
- To evaluate the diagnostic value of abdominal auscultation.
Main Methods:
- 100 physicians evaluated 12 recordings of intestinal sounds from patients with acute abdominal pain and healthy volunteers.
- Physicians classified sounds as normal or pathologic.
- Fisher's exact test analyzed group comparisons.
Main Results:
- Agreement was 72% for normal sounds and 64% for intestinal obstruction.
- Colonic obstruction sounds were correctly identified as pathologic in 94% of cases.
- Gastrointestinal medicine specialists performed worse than gastrointestinal surgery specialists in diagnosing bowel obstruction.
Conclusions:
- Inter-rater agreement for abdominal auscultation is acceptable in normal subjects and intestinal obstruction.
- Abdominal auscultation is a useful clinical tool for patients presenting with acute abdominal pain.