Impact of Nonvascular Thoracic MR Imaging on the Clinical Decision Making of Thoracic Surgeons: A 2-year Prospective Study.

Purpose To determine the impact of nonvascular thoracic magnetic resonance (MR) imaging on the clinical decision making and diagnostic certainty of thoracic surgeons. Materials and Methods Seven thoracic surgeons at Massachusetts General Hospital, an academic quaternary referral hospital, participated in this 2-year, prospective, institution review board-approved, HIPAA-compliant pre- and post-MR imaging survey study after completing a one-time demographic survey. Between July 16, 2013, and July 13, 2015, each time a thoracic surgeon ordered a nonvascular thoracic MR imaging study via radiology order entry, he or she was sent a link to the pre-test survey that ascertained the clinical rationale for MR imaging, the clinical management plan if MR imaging was not an option, and pre-test diagnostic certainty. Upon completion of the MR imaging report, the surgeon was sent a link to the post-test survey assessing if/how MR imaging changed clinical management, the surgeon's comfort with the clinical management plan, and post-test diagnostic certainty. Data were analyzed with Student t, Wilcoxon, and McNemar tests. Results A total of 99 pre- and post-test surveys were completed. Most MR imaging studies (64 of 99 [65%]) were requested because of indeterminate computed tomographic findings. The use of MR imaging significantly reduced the number of planned surgical interventions (P < .001), modified the surgical approach in 54% (14 of 26) of surgical cases, and increased surgeon comfort with the patient management plan in 95% (94 of 99) of cases. Increased diagnostic certainty as a result of MR imaging was highly significant (P < .0001). In 21% (21 of 99) of cases, definitive MR imaging results warranted no further follow-up or clinical care. Conclusion In appropriate cases, assessment with nonvascular thoracic MR imaging substantially affects the clinical decision making and diagnostic certainty of thoracic surgeons. (©) RSNA, 2016 Online supplemental material is available for this article. An earlier incorrect version of this article appeared online. This article was corrected on May 2, 2016.