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Toward a Framework for Benefit-Risk Assessment in Diagnostic Imaging

Highlights

  • Standardizing diagnostic test-related benefits and risks may improve decision making.

  • Benefit-risk assessment (BRA) in diagnostic radiology involves multiple criteria.

  • We propose a framework and process based on using standardized benefit-risk criteria (BRC).

  • Multi-disciplinary teams of radiologists and imaging-ordering providers may improve decisions.

Rationale and Objectives

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Materials and Methods

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Results

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Conclusion

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Introduction

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Methods

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Creation and Design of Survey

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Selection of Clinical Scenarios

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Survey Respondent Identification and Recruitment

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Selection of BRC for Clinical Scenarios

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A patient seeks diagnosis for non-specific, subacute low back pain. The patient has had non-specific pain for more than 3 months but has no history of structural problems or trauma, leg pain or red flags. You are asked to weigh the benefits and harms of two diagnostic approaches: Approach A: magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) Approach B: no additional diagnostic or therapeutic action (No Test) For each reason listed below select MRI if MRI offers an advantage over No Test, select No Test if No Test offers an advantage over MRI and select N/A if comparison is not possible or there is no meaningful difference between approaches.

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Results

Literature Search

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Online Survey Responses

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TABLE 1

Description of Clinical Conditions Presented in the Survey

ACR AC Clinical Scenarios Survey Description of Case Comparators Clinical Specialties Recruited Low back pain (NGC-8863) variant 1 A patient seeks diagnosis for nonspecific, subacute lower back pain. The patient has had nonspecific pain for more than 3 months but has no history of structural problems or trauma, leg pain, or red flags. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) compared to no testing Neuroradiology and primary care Chronic headache, no new features (NGC-7779) variant 1 A patient seeks diagnosis for chronic uncomplicated headache. The patient is not experiencing new headache features, focal neurologic deficits, or red flags. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) compared to no testing Neuroradiology and primary care Lower quadrant pain-suspected appendicitis (NGC-10146) variant 1 A patient arrives complaining of lower quadrant pain. Fever, leukocytosis, and other signs point to a classic case of clinical appendicitis. Ultrasound (US) compared to computed tomography (CT) Emergency medicine and emergency radiology Acute-onset flank pain suspicion of stone disease (NGC-008476) variant 2 A patient arrives complaining of acute-onset flank pain. The patient is having recurrent symptoms of stone disease. Ultrasound (US) compared to computed tomography (CT) Emergency medicine and emergency radiology

AC, Appropriateness Criteria; ACR, American College of Radiology; NGC, National Guideline Clearinghouse.

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The Finalized BRC Domains and Criteria

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TABLE 2

Test-specific Features Domain BRC

Criteria Brief Description Missed cases Type II error or as 1-NPV (the chance of having the condition among those who test negative) False diagnoses Type I error or 1-PPV (the chance of not having the condition among those who test positive) Diagnostic accuracy consistency Existence/extent of influence of patient characteristics on diagnostic accuracy Interobserver reading agreement Proxy measure of image clarity and quality Depth/breadth of anatomy visualization Categorization of extent of anomaly characterization (eg, size, shape, vascularization, shape) Invasiveness/risk of adverse events The number or categorization of probabilities and/or severity of adverse events Contrast reaction potential Probability or categorization of probability and/or severity of contrast reaction Ionizing radiation dose Measure of millisievert dose or categorization of dose Patient-specific exclusions Measure of existence/extent categorization of exclusions (eg, metal implants, BMI, age) Failure/malfunction rate Failure rate or categorization of the rate/manufacturer reputation Patient preparation requirements Number of minutes or categorization of relative wait times Examination time Number of minutes or categorization of relative wait times Posttest observation time Number of minutes or categorization of relative wait times Decision support Existence/extent of automated interpretation or characterization of function Portability Existence/extent of device portability Ease of use Categorization of dependence on skilled operator Reimbursement potential Categorization of relative potential for reimbursement

BMI, body mass index; BRC, benefit-risk criteria; NPV, negative predictive value; PPV, positive predictive value.

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Test-specific Features ( N = 17)

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Patient Management and Provider Intrinsic Value ( N = 12)

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TABLE 3

Patient Management and Provider Intrinsic Value BRC

Criteria Brief Description Therapeutic/procedural success Net counts/probability and severity/categorization of complications of medical treatment with/without test Potential for additional confirmatory testing (inconclusive/false-positive results) Existence/extent of confirmatory testing Potential for incidental finding management Existence/extent of repeat follow-up Net unnecessary treatment (test prescribed or averted treatment) Net counts/probability and severity/categorization of unnecessary treatments performed or averted based on test information Access to test Perceived relative access to test Time to diagnosis Net hours/days/weeks to diagnosis or extent of delay with/without test Inpatient/outpatient healthcare visits Net number of healthcare visits or extent of utilization with/without test Time to discharge Net hours/days/weeks to discharge with/without test Provider utility Extent of confidence in test usefulness Liability protections Existence/extent of protection from liability afforded by test Financial incentives Existence/extent associated with test Contribution of information to prognosis Existence/extent of test information contributing to prognosis

BRC, benefit-risk criteria.

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Patient Intrinsic Value and Outcomes ( N = 7)

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TABLE 4

Patient Outcomes and Intrinsic Value Domain BRC

Criteria Brief Description Value of knowing Value of knowing true test results; decrease in perceived uncertainty (eg, peace of mind, reassurance) Disvalue of knowing Disvalue of knowing false test results or learning of insignificant incidental findings; increase in perceived uncertainty (eg, anxiety, confusion, distrust) Burden (time and money) to patient Out-of-pocket travel costs and work absenteeism: direct time and money costs of test Patient comfort Claustrophobia, fasting, physical discomfort, and pain from test Patient future compliance and behavior Changes in behavior: measures of uptake or attrition of health visits/programs Radiation-induced cancers Count of expected cases/QALYs lost Length/quality of life Net incremental survival attributable to test/net QALYs

BRC, benefit-risk criteria; QALYs, quality-adjusted life-years.

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Additional Considerations

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Clinical Scenarios

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TABLE 5

Survey Results by Clinical Scenario and Specialty

Domain Initial List of Benefit-risk Criteria Low Back Pain Chronic Headache Suspected Appendicitis Suspicion of Stone Disease PCP NRAD PCP NRAD ED MD ED RAD ED MD ED RAD TSF Manufacturer reputation ◐ ◐ ◐ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○Missed cases ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● False diagnoses ● ● ● ● ◕ ● ◕ ◕ Patient preparation requirements ● ● ● ◕ ◐ ◐ ◐ ○ Diagnostic accuracy consistency ◕ ● ◕ ● ● ● ● ● Invasiveness/risk of adverse events ● ◕ ● ◕ ● ◕ ◕ ◐ Contrast reaction potential ● ◕ ● ◕ ● ● ◕ ● Ionizing radiation dose ○ ◐ ◐ ○ ● ● ● ● Failure/malfunction rate ◕ ● ● ● ○ ◐ ○ ○ Decision support features ◕ ● ● ◕ ◐ ○ ◐ ○ Portability of the device ◕ ◕ ◐ ◕ ● ● ● ● Reimbursement potential ● ● ◕ ● ○ ○ ○ ○ PMPV Therapeutic/procedural success ● ● ◐ ◕ ○ ◕ ◐ ◐Potential for additional confirmatory testing ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●Provider utility ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● Potential for incidental findings management ● ● ● ◕ ● ● ● ● Net unnecessary treatment ● ● ● ◕ ◕ ◕ ◕ ◐ Time to diagnosis ● ● ● ◕ ◕ ◕ ◕ ● Inpatient/outpatient healthcare visits ● ◕ ● ◕ ○ ◐ ◐ ○ Time to discharge ◕ ◕ ◐ ◕ ◐ ◐ ○ ○ Liability protections ● ◕ ● ● ● ◕ ◕ ◐ Financial incentives ◐ ● ◕ ◕ ○ ○ ○ ◐ Contribution of information to prognosis ◕ ● ◕ ● ● ● ● ● POIV Value of knowing ◕ ● ◕ ● ◐ ◕ ● ◕ Disvalue of knowing ● ● ● ● ◐ ○ ◐ ○ Burden (time and money) to patient ● ● ● ● ◕ ◕ ◕ ● Patient future compliance and behavior ◐ ○ ○ ◐ ○ ○ ○ ○ Radiation-induced cancers ◐ ◐ ◐ ○ ● ● ● ● Quality of life ◐ ◕ ◐ ◐ ○ ○ ○ ○ Length of life ◐ ◐ ○ ◐ ◐ ○ ○ ○ Consensus percentages indicating respondents believed there were differences between testing strategies (MRI vs no testing or CT vs US), stratified by clinical scenario and specialty <25% 25%–50% 51%–75% >75% ○ ◐ ◕ ●

CT, computed tomography; ED MD, emergency department medical doctor; ED RAD, emergency radiologist; MRI, magnetic resonance imaging; NRAD, neuroradiologist; PCP, primary care provider; PMPV, patient management and provider intrinsic value; POIV, patient outcomes and intrinsic value; TSF, test-specific features; US, ultrasound.

Patient comfort, interobserver reading agreement, depth/breadth of anatomy visualization, patient-specific exclusions, patient preparation requirements, examination time, posttest observation time, ease of use, access to test, and time to diagnosis were added to the final list based on short answer responses on the survey. Manufacturer reputation removed from the final list.

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Figure 1, Inter- and intra-agreement of selection of BRC among radiologists and nonradiologists grouped by domain. Each quadrant represents a clinical scenario and the percent selection of relevant criteria by survey respondents. The x-axis depicts the percent of nonradiologists who voted for each criterion. Likewise, the y-axis depicts the percent of radiologists who voted for each criterion. Scatter points are not labeled by criterion but by domain. Gray squares depict test-specific feature criteria, black dots depict patient management and provider intrinsic value, and triangles depict patient intrinsic value and outcomes. Overlapping markers indicate that more than one criterion received the same radiologist and nonradiologist percentage of selections. Dashed gray line marks the criteria for which there is perfect agreement between radiologists and nonradiologists. BRC, benefit-risk criteria; ED, emergency department

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The Proposed Framework: Consensus-based Selection of Relevant BRC

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Figure 2, BRC selection framework illustrative example. BRC selection comprises several steps. In the first step, panel members vote on criteria for which there are differences between each of the pair of tests. This step is repeated until all pairs of diagnostic approaches (three pairs shown in this example) have been evaluated. In the next step, the votes are tallied and the criteria meeting the threshold of votes become relevant criteria. In the last step, the individual lists are collapsed into a single aggregated list of relevant BRC. BRC, benefit-risk criteria.

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Step 1: Pairwise Comparisons Based on Individual Beliefs

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Step 2: Consensus Selection of Relevant Criteria

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Step 3: Group Review of the Aggregated List

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Discussion

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Acknowledgments

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Appendix

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Figure A1, A flowchart of included and excluded studies in literature search.

TABLE A1

Literature Search Results Mapped to the Fryback and Thornbury Hierarchical Model of Efficacy

Technical efficacy

The design and technical performance of test

Resolution of line pairs

Modulation of transfer function change

Gray scale range

Amount of mottle

Sharpness

Reliability of image quality and performance

Performance dependencies (multiple tests relying on one another for effectiveness)

Patient wait/preparation time for test

Length of examination

Post-test observation time

Inconclusive results Diagnostic accuracy efficacy

Yield of abnormal or normal diagnoses in case series

Diagnostic accuracy

Positive and negative predictive value

Sensitivity and specificity in a clinical case

ROC Positive and negative predictive values (47 references)

Positive likelihood ratio

Diagnostic odds ratio

Detection percentage

Accuracy in subpopulations Diagnostic thinking efficacy

Impact on pretest probability

Probability of learning incidental information Provider confidence

Liability avoidance

Risk stratification

Probability of learning incidental information

Pre-test probability Therapeutic efficacy

How helpful an imaging test is to patient management

Unnecessary procedures avoided

Pre-test/post-test therapy changes Procedural success

Number of healthcare visits

Need for additional follow-up

Downstream procedures from incidental findings

Radiation exposure dose

Extent and severity of harms associated with unnecessary procedures Patient outcome efficacy

Morbidity (procedures) avoided in QALYs

Patient improvement with vs. without test

Survival measured in QALYs

Value of test information to patient (future planning and psychological impact)

Cost per QALY saved with image information Pain and other physical discomfort such as tight quarters

Psychological impact (e.g. anxiety, reassurance or peace of mind)

Future planning based on test information

Tolerability

Sequelae from contrast reagent reactions

Invasiveness

Patient compliance (downstream)

Morbidity and mortality benefit from improved treatment plan

Radiation-associated cancers

Non-institutionalized days alive

Quality of life

ROC, receiver operating characteristic; QALYs, quality-adjusted life-years.

Societal efficacy, the last tier of the hierarchy, is not represented, as costs are not typically considered in benefit-risk analyses.

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