Solitary Pulmonary Nodule on Helical Dynamic CT Scans: Analysis of the Enhancement Patterns Using a Computer-Aided Diagnosis (CAD) System.
- Author:
Eun Jung CHOI
1
;
Gong Yong JIN
;
Young Min HAN
;
Young Sun LEE
;
Keun Sang KWEON
Author Information
- Publication Type:Original Article ; Comparative Study
- Keywords: Computers, diagnosis aid; Lung neoplasms, diagnosis; Lung neoplasms, nodule
- MeSH: Adult; Aged; Contrast Media; Diagnosis, Computer-Assisted/*methods; Diagnosis, Differential; Female; Humans; Iohexol/analogs & derivatives/diagnostic use; Lung Neoplasms/*radiography; Male; Middle Aged; Predictive Value of Tests; Radiographic Image Enhancement/*methods; Retrospective Studies; Sensitivity and Specificity; Solitary Pulmonary Nodule/*radiography; Tomography, Spiral Computed/*methods
- From:Korean Journal of Radiology 2008;9(5):401-408
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:English
- Abstract: OBJECTIVE: We wanted to investigate the usefulness of a computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) system in assisting radiologists to diagnosis malignant solitary pulmonary nodules (SPNs), as compared with diagnosing SPNs with using direct personal drawing. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty patients with SPNs were analyzed. After the pre-contrast scan was performed, an additional ten series of post-contrast images were obtained at 20-second intervals. Two investigators measured the attenuation values of the SPNs: a radiologist who drew the regions of interest (ROIs), and a technician who used a CAD system. The Bland and Altman plots were used to compare the net enhancement between a CAD system and direct personal drawing. The diagnostic characteristics of the malignant SPNs were calculated by considering the CAD and direct personal drawing and with using Fisher's exact test. RESULTS: On the Bland and Altman plot, the net enhancement difference between the CAD system and direct personal drawing was not significant (within +/- 2 standard deriation). The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV) and accuracy of diagnosing malignant SPNs using CAD was 92%, 85%, 75%, 96% and 88%, respectively. The sensitivity, specificity, PPV, NPV and accuracy of diagnosing malignant SPNs using direct drawing was 92%, 89%, 79%, 92% and 88%, respectively. CONCLUSION: The CAD system was a useful tool for diagnosing malignant SPNs.
