EVALUATION OF THE FREQUENCY, CONTRIBUTING FACTORS AND IMPACT ON PATIENT OF REPEAT EXAMINATION IN NON-INVASIVE IMAGING MODALITIES IN PESHAWAR, PAKISTAN

Abstract

Introduction Although non-invasive imaging is a major component of modern medical diagnosis, repeated examinations can result in increased radiation exposure, unnecessary costs, and treatment delays. Therefore, this study examines the frequency of repeat imaging in Peshawar, Pakistan, which identifies the underlying reasons for such repetitions, and evaluates their consequences on patients, with the aim of improving imaging practices and enhancing patient safety. Methodology Our study proposed a descriptive cross-sectional model which involved 150 radiologists and technologists from PGH, KTH, RMI, and NWGH, using structured questionnaires for data collection and SPSS for statistical analysis. Results Results show most repeat examinations were in the range of 1–5 among all 6 modalities and chest examinations were the most repeated one (38%). While assessing the causes of repeat examination results showed most of the repetition in x-ray (44.4%), CT (46.9%) and MRI (42.3%) were due to patient movement while in fluoroscopy (52.6%) and USG (57.9%) were due to uncooperative patients and in mammography they were due to inadequate compression and patient positioning (44.4%). Furthermore, Patient weight (78%), workload (64%) are also main contributors to repeat examinations. The most common negative impact of these examinations on patients was radiation overexposure (53.3%). Conclusion Overall, our study reveals that patient movement was the primary causes of repeat imaging tests, in X-rays, CT, and MRI, in fluoroscopy and ultrasound, it was uncooperative patients while in mammography it was positioning errors. Chest examinations are most often repeated. Repeat rates are greatly influenced by variables including patient size, workload, and technician education. Overexposure to radiation was shown to be the most frequent adverse effect on individuals.