Artificial Intelligence for Image Interpretation: Point-The Radiologist's Potential Friend

Clinical applications of artificial intelligence in radiology

The rapid growth of medical imaging has placed increasing demands on radiologists. In this scenario, artificial intelligence (AI) has become an attractive partner, one that may complement case interpretation and may aid in various non-interpretive aspects of the work in the radiological clinic. In this review, we discuss interpretative and non-interpretative uses of AI in the clinical practice, as well as report on the barriers to AI's adoption in the clinic. We show that AI currently has a modest to moderate penetration in the clinical practice, with many radiologists still being unconvinced of its value and the return on its investment. Moreover, we discuss the radiologists' liabilities regarding the AI decisions, and explain how we currently do not have regulation to guide the implementation of explainable AI or of self-learning algorithms.

Mandating Limits on Workload, Duty, and Speed in Radiology

Research has not yet quantified the effects of workload or duty hours on the accuracy of radiologists. With the exception of a brief reduction in imaging studies during the 2020 peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the workload of radiologists in the United States has seen relentless growth in recent years. One concern is that this increased demand could lead to reduced accuracy. Behavioral studies in species ranging from insects to humans have shown that decision speed is inversely correlated to decision accuracy. A potential solution is to institute workload and duty limits to optimize radiologist performance and patient safety. The concern, however, is that any prescribed mandated limits would be arbitrary and thus no more advantageous than allowing radiologists to self-regulate. Specific studies have been proposed to determine whether limits reduce error, and if so, to provide a principled basis for such limits. This could determine the precise susceptibility of individual radiologists to medical error as a function of speed during image viewing, the maximum number of studies that could be read during a work shift, and the appropriate shift duration as a function of time of day. Before principled recommendations for restrictions are made, however, it is important to understand how radiologists function both optimally and at the margins of adequate performance. This study examines the relationship between interpretation speed and error rates in radiology, the potential influence of artificial intelligence on reading speed and error rates, and the possible outcomes of imposed limits on both caseload and duty hours. This review concludes that the scientific evidence needed to make meaningful rules is lacking and notes that regulating workloads without scientific principles can be more harmful than not regulating at all.

AUR-RRA Review: Logistics of Academic-Industry Partnerships in Artificial Intelligence

The Radiology Research Alliance (RRA) of the Association of University Radiologists (AUR) convenes Task Forces to address current topics in radiology. In this article, the AUR-RRA Task Force on Academic-Industry Partnerships for Artificial Intelligence, considered issues of importance to academic radiology departments contemplating industry partnerships in artificial intelligence (AI) development, testing and evaluation. Our goal was to create a framework encompassing the domains of clinical, technical, regulatory, legal and financial considerations that impact the arrangement and success of such partnerships.