iRADiX

Few more tips in writing the report

I will continue from where I left in the previous post. These are few of the tips, which is known to one and all. I will highlight their importance with few examples.

• Start with the main abnormality and add supporting radiological abnormalities centered around it.

Example: Instead of writing,

"Significant hydronephrosis is seen in the left kidney. The right kidney is normal. The left ureter is also dilated...."

and somewhere in next paragraph,

"There is a large soft tissue mass in the retroperitoneum encasing the aorta and left ureter",

it is better to say,

"A large retroperitoneal soft tissue attenuation mass is shown encasing the aorta and left ureter, leading to moderate left hydronephrosis."

We have seen what to avoid in reporting. Before I proceed to few more tips in reporting, let us look in depth about the structure of radiological report.

The radiological report can be divided into 4 parts:

1. Heading/Type of examination
2. Technique/Protocol
3. Description/Main report/Findings
4. Conclusion/Summary/Comment

Translation of images to words

"An actor in his 60s, 6^1/2 tall, well built with a French beard, has a voice of loin. Did you get him?"

No guess work here, you all are right, he is Amitabh Bachan. A few appropriate words are more than enough to give the picture in words.

Now imagine the same sentence is given to a man, who does not know Bollywood and does not watch Indian television. Even if you describe Amitabh Bachan in 200 pages, he cannot make out whom you are talking about, unless you tell in the beginning that you are talking about Amitabh Bachan, a Bollywood actor.

I do not recall having seen a greater communicator than Ronald Reagan. On his birthday during the last year of his presidency, he said "Seventy-five years ago I was born in Tampico, Illinois, in a little flat above the bank building. We didn't have any other contact with the bank than that.." These sentences were delivered with such emotive gestures that the audience broke into rapturous applause. His successor George Bush owed his presidency to Reagan's eloquence. "Thank You Sir" acknowledged the grateful Bush celebrating his election victory.