Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35997839›Full record

ArticleArchives of orthopaedic and trauma surgery2023

Linguistic tones in MRI reports correlate with severity of pathology for rotator cuff tendinopathy.

Eugene Kim, Billy Table, David Ring, Amirreza Fatehi, Tom Joris Crijns

Open access · greenAbstract read
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In one paragraph

Article in Archives of orthopaedic and trauma surgery, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
0.2field-weighted citation impact, top 43% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed, 1 citations in OpenAlex.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Eugene KimDepartment of Surgery and Perioperative Care, Dell Medical School, The University of Texas at Austin, 1701 Trinity Street, Austin, TX, 78705, USA.
Billy TableDepartment of Surgery and Perioperative Care, Dell Medical School, The University of Texas at Austin, 1701 Trinity Street, Austin, TX, 78705, USA.
David RingDepartment of Surgery and Perioperative Care, Dell Medical School, The University of Texas at Austin, 1701 Trinity Street, Austin, TX, 78705, USA. david.ring@austin.utexas.edu.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7618-6719
Amirreza FatehiDepartment of Surgery and Perioperative Care, Dell Medical School, The University of Texas at Austin, 1701 Trinity Street, Austin, TX, 78705, USA.
Tom Joris CrijnsDepartment of Surgery and Perioperative Care, Dell Medical School, The University of Texas at Austin, 1701 Trinity Street, Austin, TX, 78705, USA.
The University of Texas at Austin · US

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundWritten communication can convey one's emotions, personality, and sentiments. Radiology reports employ medical jargon and serve to document a patients' condition. Patients might misinterpret this medical jargon in a way that increases their anxiety and makes them feel unwell. We were interested whether linguistic tones in MRI reports vary between radiologists and correlate with the severity of pathology. QUESTIONS/PURPOSES: (1) Is there variation in linguistic tones among different radiologists reporting MRI results for rotator cuff tendinopathy? (2) Is the retraction of the supraspinatus tendon in millimeters associated with linguistic tones?

methodsTwo hundred twenty consecutive MRI reports of patients with full-thickness rotator cuff defects were collected. Supraspinatus retraction was measured on the MRI using viewer tools. Using Kruskal-Wallis H tests, we measured variation between 11 radiologists for the following tones: positive emotion, negative emotion, analytical thinking, cause, insight, tentativeness, certainty, and informal speech. We also measured the correlation of tones and the degree of tendon retraction. Multilevel mixed-effects linear regression models were constructed, seeking factors associated with the tone, accounting for retraction, the presence of prior imaging, and for the effects of each radiologist (nesting).

resultsThere were statistically significant differences for all of the tones by radiologist. In bivariate analysis, greater retraction of the supraspinatus muscle in millimeters was associated with more negative emotion and certainty, and with less tentativeness. In multilevel mixed-effects linear regression, more negative tones were associated with greater retraction and absence of prior imaging. Greater tentativeness was associated with the absence of prior imaging, but not with retraction.

conclusionsRadiology reports have emotional content that is relatively negative, varies by radiologist and is affected by pathology. Strategies for more hopeful, positive, optimistic descriptions of pathology have the potential to help patients feel better without introducing inaccuracies even if unlikely. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level III, Diagnostic.

Indexed as

Rotator Cuff InjuriesTendinopathyHumansLinguisticsMagnetic Resonance ImagingRotator CuffLinguistic inquiry and word countRadiology reportsRotator cuffTendinopathyVariation

Identifiers

PMID35997839
OpenAlexW4292833579

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.