Development and evaluation of a risk assessment tool to improve clinical triage accuracy for colonoscopic investigations.

Background: Gastroenterology Departments at hospitals within Australia receive thousands of General Practitioner (GP)-referral letters for gastrointestinal investigations every month. Many of these requests are for colonoscopy. This study aims to evaluate the performance of the current symptoms-based triage system compared to a novel risk score using objective markers.

Evidence-based guideline for the written radiology report: methods, recommendations and implementation challenges.

The written radiology report is the dominant method by which radiologists communicate the results of diagnostic and interventional imaging procedures. It has an important impact on decisions about further investigation and management. Its form and content can be influential in reducing harm to patients and mitigating risk for practitioners but varies markedly with little standardisation in practice.

The use of indigocarmine spray increases the colonoscopic detection rate of adenomas.

Purpose: It remains controversial whether chromocolonoscopy using indigocarmine increases the detection of colorectal polyps. We aimed to assess the impact of indigocarmine dye spray on the detection rate of adenomas and the feasibility of learning the technique in a Western practice.

Methods: 400 patients were prospectively allocated into 2 groups; A (n = 200): indigocarmine chromocolonoscopy was performed by a Japanese colonoscopist with expertise in chromoscopy; B (n = 200): initial 100 patients (B-1), a Western colonoscopist with no previous experience of chromoscopy performed conventional colonoscopy, but with at least 10 min observation during colonoscopy withdrawal.

Diagnosis and outcome of small bowel tumors found by capsule endoscopy: a three-center Australian experience.

Objective: The objective of the study was to examine diagnosis and outcome in a series of patients with small bowel tumors detected by capsule endoscopy (CE) in three Australian centers.

Methods: Review of prospectively collected data from 416 CEs identified 27 tumors in 26 patients. Clinical parameters, tumor histology, and follow-up are reported.