The impact of acoustic noise found within clinical departments on radiology performance.

Rationale And Objectives: In recent years, there has been increasing interest in the impact of environmental factors such as ambient light on radiologist performance. One commonly encountered distractor found within all clinical departments that has received little or no attention is acoustic noise.

Materials And Methods: The present work records the level of noises encountered within environments where radiologic images are viewed and establishes the impact of a clinically relevant level of noise on the ability of radiologists to perform a typical diagnostic task.