Pamela Tecce Johnson MD, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Melissa Ruth Ann Garland MS, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Elliot Keith Fishman MD, Presenter: Nothing to Disclose

The internet has evolved as an invaluable resource for medical information, providing access for physicians to current medical literature and continuing medical education (CME) resources. Within radiology, several modality specific websites have been developed. These sites incoporate various educational vehicles, including text book chapters, case presentations, lectures and teaching modules. The purpose of this study was to determine the specific information being sought by medical personnel who visited a CT website.

A website dedicated to computed tomography has been in existence for more than 4 years. The site offers users the option of asking a specific question to an expert in Body CT. Categories were defined to classify the question topic. The 417 questions posed between February 2003 and February 2004 were reviewed and classified.

The majority of the questions pertained to CT data acquisition protocols (43%), followed by intravenous contrast administration (14%). The remaining categories were addressed with the following frequency: CT interpretation (9%), CT hardware (6%), 3D rendering (5%), obtaining educational resources (5%), modality of choice for a specific disease (3%), oral contrast administration (3%), CT dose (2%), reimbursement (2%), the website (2%), physician training (1%), departmental protocol (1%), CT data postprocessing (1%), availability of data for research or presentation (1%), CT data display (1%), assessment of CT accuracy (1%).

Individuals requesting information were most interested in the proper performance of CT data acquisition. This evaluation provides insight into optimal website and CME resource design to provide physicians and other medical personnel with the information they are seeking.

Johnson, P, Garland, M, Fishman, E, Defining Current Clinical Concerns of Radiologists: Evaluation of Questions Submitted to a Computed Tomography (CT) Educational Website.  Radiological Society of North America 2004 Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting, November 28 - December 3, 2004 ,Chicago IL. http://archive.rsna.org/2004/4404555.html