Full-spine radiographs: what others are reporting—a survey of Society of Skeletal Radiology members

Objective

Full-spine radiographs are frequently ordered by spinal deformity surgeons to assess spinal imbalance. The radiologist interpretation of these films varies amongst providers. Detailed numeric measurements of the deformity are time-consuming. In this study, we hoped to better define current practice patterns for interpretation of spinal deformity films amongst musculoskeletal radiologists in North America.

Materials and methods

An anonymous online survey was conducted amongst Society of Skeletal Radiology members.

Results

Only 26.5% of respondents (n = 57) routinely report pelvic tilt, 23.2% (n = 52) for sagittal vertical axis and 5.1% (n = 11) for Pelvic Incidence Lumbar Lordosis mismatch in adult spinal deformity. Furthermore, the majority of musculoskeletal radiologists (84.96%) dictate the same type of report for both adult and pediatric cases.

Conclusions

The majority (n = 199, 70%) of 283 respondents state that no institutional standard template for full-spine dictations exists. The development of such templates listing appropriate parameters to include in the dictation may be useful in order to ensure that the radiologist's effort and clinical utility for the ordering provider are optimized.