Type:
Educational Exhibit
Keywords:
Education and training, Education, MR, CT, Conventional radiography, Musculoskeletal system, Gastrointestinal tract, Anatomy
Authors:
A. P. Marrero González1, S. C. Torres-Ayala2, L. C. Figueroa-Diaz1, M. Betancourt-Torres3, J. Maldonado1, F. G. Rodriguez-Ruiz4; 1San Juan, PR/US, 2Mayaguez, PR/US, 3Hato rey, PR/US, 4Caguas, PR/US
DOI:
10.1594/ecr2018/C-1557
Background
For radiologists,
signs associated with diseases are valuable since they provide a great way to remember and distinguish different pathologies.
They provide a physician confidence in recognizing a pathology in order to narrow down the differential diagnosis.
Many radiological signs are named by the things they resemble including inanimate objects,
food,
plants,
and even animals.
Thousands of signs have been presented,
since the first radiological sign was described in 1918.
[2] There are signs for every imaging modality and every radiological subspecialty.
Radiologists are both descriptive and analytical,
and it is in that descriptive nature that metaphoric radiological signs are born.
In a radiological report,
one must describe the findings in such a way that anyone reading it feels as though they also saw the image and have the same impression as the radiologist.
To do so,
a unique sense of description has been developed and due to the ever increasing volume of work,
pattern recognition is of uttermost importance.
Radiological signs provide a way for rapid pattern recognition,
in order to narrow the differential diagnosis and provide a confident report.
[2,14]
We will provide a pictorial review of radiological signs inspired by animals with case examples from our Institution.
Each sign will be paired with photographs or diagrams of the animals they represent and a brief explanatory background will be provided,
as well as pathology description and common treatments.
We aim to provide an entertaining way for reviewing important and pathognomonic radiological signs,
making them recognizable and unforgettable for physicians from every specialty.