Chest x-ray in patients with suspected infection in the emergency department

The overall aim of the project is to investigate patient characteristics and chest x-ray characteristics in emergency department patients with suspected infection.

This is a sub-study of the prospective observational study AQUA24.

Three emergency departments in Central Denmark Region.

This study includes all patients with suspected infection and a performed chest x-ray while admitted to one of the following EDs in Central Denmark Region: Aarhus University Hospital, Regional Hospital Herning, and Region Hospital Randers from 20th January 2020 – 2nd March 2020.

Patient variables contain descriptive data on sex, age, BMI, vital signs, organ dysfunction, administration time of intravenous and oral antibiotics, comorbidities, mortality, ED length of stay, and in-hospital length of stay.

Imaging variables contain CXR time format variables (requisition time, examination time, and description time), CXR position, quality of CXR, variables of the radiologist’s x-ray description and examination room of the first CXR requested from the ED, number of CXR during the entire hospitalization, as well as if any CT examination time.

The primary outcome will be chest x-ray protocol (standing, lying, sitting), as well as the characteristics of these patients and their imaging characteristics.

This study will give valuable insight into a very common diagnostic pathway in emergency departments. How common are standing, sitting, and supine CXR.

This study will shed light on the use of CXR in ED patients with suspected infection and thereby guide the rational use of CXR.

Stig Holm Ovesen, PhD

Marie K. Jessen, PhD

Jesper Weile, Associate Professor, MD, PhD