Development of standard documentation for reporting carotid ultrasound findings at Shimane University Hospital

Reports on findings from carotid ultrasonography vary among individual hospitals. In 2008, Shimane University Hospital converted its paper-based records of carotid ultrasonography to an electronic format. The format for reporting the findings of carotid ultrasonography was constructed with the cooperation of the departments of diabetic internal medicine, neurology, and neurosurgery, focusing on the perioperative management of carotid artery stenting. B-mode ultrasonography was used to measure vessel diameter, maximum intima-media thickness of bilateral arteries (common carotid artery, carotid bulb, internal carotid artery, and vertebral artery), total plaque score, and rate of stenosis in the internal carotid artery. Doppler mode was used to measure peak systolic flow velocity, end-diastolic flow velocity, and resistance index. The most important issue was the sonographer’s impression. The schema drawn by the sonographer using a built-in drawing tool was very useful for enabling the attending physician to understand the patient’s carotid situation, although this was somewhat time-consuming. The greater the increase in the number of carotid ultrasound examinations, the more time needed to draw such a schema. The development of carotid ultrasound reporting is ongoing, and more sophisticated approaches are needed.