Computer-assisted mammography feedback program (CAMFP) an electronic tool for continuing medical education

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES: Our goal was to develop and evaluate software to support a computer assisted mammography feedback program (CAMFP) to be used for continuing medical education (CME). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirty-five radiologists from our region signed consent to participate in an institutional review board-approved film-reading study. The radiologists primarily assessed digitized mammograms and received feedback in five film interpretation sessions. A bivariate analysis was used to evaluate the joint effects of the training on sensitivity and specificity, and the effects of image quality on reading performance were explored. RESULTS: Interpretation was influenced by the CAMFP intervention: Sensitivity increased (Delta sensitivity = 0.086, P < .001) and specificity decreased (Delta specificity = -0.057, P = .04). Variability in interpretation among radiologists also decreased after the training sessions (P = .035). CONCLUSION: The CAMFP intervention improved sensitivity and decreased variability among radiologist's interpretations. Although this improvement was partially offset by decreased specificity, the program is potentially useful as a component of continuing medical education of radiologists. Dissemination via the web may be possible using digital mammography.