MOSEARCH - A RADIOLOGIST-FRIENDLY TOOL FOR FINDING BASED DIAGNOSTIC REPORT AND IMAGE RETRIEVAL

The diagnostic reports generated in a radiology department contain a w ealth of information, Although radiology information systems can great ly facilitate patient-based access to this information, they typically provide only limited finding-based access. A user-friendly personal c omputer-based software package that allows radiologists to conduct sop histicated real-time searches of diagnostic reports on the basis of pa tient characteristics, modality used, anatomy examined, and imaging fi ndings and to easily review, refine, and output the results was design ed and implemented in a large academic hospital. A notable feature of this system is the use of synonym-matching and syntactic cues, which a llow it to identify findings within the text of a diagnostic report mu ch more accurately than a simple keyword search can. This type of syst em is easily and inexpensively implemented and is a valuable tool in t he support of various research and teaching applications in a radiolog y department.