REPRESENTATIVE
CASE STUDIES
UPDATED 01/2010
The purpose of reviewing representative cases is to evaluate
the interpretive and technical
quality of the laboratory as a whole. In order to do this, it
is necessary for the ICAMRL
reviewers to evaluate representative cases from as many medical
and technical staff
members interpreting or performing any magnetic resonance examinations
in the
laboratory as possible. The cases submitted must be contemporary
(i.e., performed with current personnel on current equipment). Failure to provide
representative cases from
the current personnel may result in delay of accreditation and
request for additional case
studies.
The number of cases to be submitted per laboratory
is dependent upon the type of
accreditation requested (i.e.: Body, Cardiovascular, Musculoskeletal,
Neurological) and
the number of magnets within the laboratory. All case studies
must be selected from
within the twelve (12) months immediately prior to submission
of the application. Each case must include a sufficient number of
images to support the final diagnosis and a
signed copy of the final report. A copy of any worksheets and/or
preliminary reports, if
generated, should be submitted as well.
The following information must be on or included
with all submitted CDs or DVDs:
- Patient
age or date of birth
- Patient
ID
- Date
of the examination
- Type
of sequence
- TR
- TE
- TI
(if applicable)
- Flip
angle (if not 90°)
|
- Slice
thickness
- Interslice
gap
- Field
of view/matrix
- Acquisition
time
- Size
scale
- Image
location
- Slice
number
- Laboratory
name
|
Guidelines for case selection and organizing cases to be submitted:
1. Case selection is magnet dependent. You must submit the required sample cases for each magnet in use in your laboratory.
2. The case studies submitted (CD or DVD) must include a copy of the final report.
3. Case studies submitted for review should be submitted on CDs in standard DICOM format (JPEG, PNG or other image formats are not acceptable). The images should be either uncompressed or submitted with JPEG Lossless compression. The CD should also contain a directory (DICOMDIR) which provides useful information such as Patient Name, Date of Exam, List of Sequences, etc. The presence of a DICOM viewer will be permitted as long as the viewer is not embedded and required to view the images.
4. Each exam for review should be submitted on a separate CD and appropriately labeled with the Patient Name, Date of Exam and Body Part imaged. It is recommended to review the CD on a remote system prior to submission to ICAMRL to ensure that the images can be downloaded.
5. Submit two complete copies of the representative case studies, the finals reports, scan parameters forms, and all other documentation as requested in the application.
Note: All material submitted to the ICAMRL will be handled with strict confidentiality.
CASE STUDY REQUIREMENTS:
** Please note that filmed images are no longer accepted. All case studies must be submitted on CD or DVD with the DICOM viewer installed. (If your lab is limited to film, please contact the ICAMRL office)
The purpose of reviewing representative cases is to evaluate the interpretive and technical quality of the laboratory as a whole. In order to do this, it is necessary for the ICAMRL reviewers to evaluate representative cases from as many medical and technical staff members interpreting or performing any magnetic resonance examinations in the laboratory as possible.
Note: If your laboratory does not perform the required exams listed below, please contact the ICAMRL to discuss possible alternatives.
- BODY ACCREDITATION
**ONLY 1 NORMAL CASE STUDY, THE REMAINING CASES MUST DEMONSTRATE PATHOLOGY
Case One - 1 upper abdomen (i.e.: liver or kidney or pancreas)
Case Two - 1 soft tissue pelvis (i.e.: ovaries or prostate)
Case Three- 1 mediastinum (non-cardiac)
Case Four (choose of any of the following):
1 breast (for breast only, see below**)
1 soft tissue neck; or
1 brachial plexus; or
Case five: any of the above, with pathology
- BREAST MRI ACCREDITATION only:
Submit 5 case studies on CD or DVD (with the DICOM viewer installed) with all sequences acquired used in the interpretation. Please submit 1 normal study, and 4 other studies demonstrating pathology. The reports and scan parameter forms must also be included.
- CARDIOVASCULAR ACCREDITATION
SUBMIT ON CD WITH DICOM VIEWER INSTALLED
Case One - 1 complete gated cine cardiac examination in either a normal patient or in a patient with valvular heart disease
Case Two - 1 complete gated cine cardiac examination in a post myocardial-infarction patient
Case Three - 1 complete aortic study demonstrating all sections of either the thoracic or abdominal aorta in a patient with pathology
Case Four and Five - any of the above, with pathology
- MUSCULOSKELETAL ACCREDITATION
**ONLY 1 NORMAL CASE STUDY, THE REMAINING CASES MUST DEMONSTRATE PATHOLOGY
Case One - 1 knee
Case Two - 1 shoulder (if shoulder exams are not performed, choose one of the following:
1 wrist; or
1 ankle; or
1 foot; or
1 elbow
Case Three - Choose one of the following not represented in Case Two:
1 wrist; or
1 ankle; or
1 foot; or
1 elbow; or
1 TMJ; or
1 spine (cervical, lumbar, thoracic)
Case Four and Five - any of the above, with pathology
- NEUROLOGICAL ACCREDITATION
Case One - 1 abnormal brain (MS or tumor)
Case Two - 1 normal spine
Case Three - 1 spine with herniated disc
Case Four and Case Five - any of the above, with pathology
MRA Accreditation
Neurological MRA only; Body MRA only; or both Neurological and Body MRA
- MRA ACCREDITATION
NEUROLOGICAL MRA ONLY; BODY MRA ONLY; OR BOTH NEUROLOGICAL AND BODY MRA.
Submit 5 cases total for the MRA testing area. If applying in both body and neurological MRA submit 3 neurological (extracranial and intracranial vessels) and 2 body MRA (non-cardiac) studies. 4 out of the 5 studies should demonstrate pathology.
MR Scan Parameter Form
The MR Scan Parameter/Protocol Form is a required document when applying for accreditation. This form must be completed for all case studies submissions.
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