Correlating the Radiological Assessment of Patient Motion with the Incidence of Repeat Sequences Documented by Log Files.

Objective: To correlate a radiological assessment of MR motion artifacts with the incidence of repeated sequences and delays derived from modality log files (MLFs) and investigate the suitability of log files for quantifying the operational impact of patient motion.

Materials And Methods: An experienced, blinded neuroradiologist retrospectively evaluated one full calendar month of sequentially obtained clinical MR exams of the head and/or brain for the presence of motion artifacts using a previously defined clinical grading scale. MLF data were analyzed to extract the occurrence of repeated sequences during the examinations. Statistical analysis included the determination of 95% confidence intervals for repetition ratios, and Welch's t-test to exclude the hypothesis of equal means for different groups of sequences.

Results: A total of 213 examinations were evaluated, comprising 1681 MLF-documented sequences, from which 1580 were archived. Radiological motion assessment scores (0, none to 4, severe) were assigned to each archived sequence. Higher motion scores correlated with a higher MLF-derived repetition probability, reflected by the average motion scores assigned to sequences that would be repeated (group 1, mean=2.5), those that are a repeat (group 2, mean=1.9), and those that are not repeated (group 3, mean=1.1) within an exam. The hypothesis of equal means was rejected with P = 5.9 × 10 for groups 1 and 2, P = 9.39 × 10 for groups 1 and 3, and P = 1.55 × 10 for groups 2 and 3. The repetition probability and associated time loss could be quantified for individual sequence types. The total time loss due to repeat sequence acquisition derived from MLFs was greater than four hours.

Conclusion: Log file data may help assess patterns of scanner and exam performance and may be useful in identifying pitfalls to diagnostic imaging in a clinical environment, particularly with respect to patient motion.