In virtual colonoscopy (also known as CT colonography or CTC), interpretation times have been reported to range from 15 to 30 minutes. For CTC to be used as a screening tool, interpretation times need to be decreased, however, said presenter Anno Graser, MD, of the University of Munich.

The researchers sought to evaluate whether Panoramic view software (Siemens Healthcare, Erlangen, Germany) could provide faster and accurate interpretation of these studies. The software, which visualizes the entire colon in a single fly-through and leaves no blind spots behind the folds, was validated using 150 CTC examinations performed on asymptomatic subjects, Graser said.

All studies received independent interpretations by two expert radiologists, and reading times and diagnostic accuracies were compared.

The researchers found that the panoramic 3D view was twice as fast as the standard bidirectional 3D fly-through technique. In addition, no significant differences in lesion detection accuracy were found between the standard view and the panoramic view, even after comparison using the rigorous t-test statistical method, Graser said.

"As a consequence, we now interpret CTC routinely on one single fly-through only," he told AuntMinnie.com.