Tired in the Reading Room: The Influence of Fatigue in Radiology

J Am Coll Radiol. 2017 Feb;14(2):191-197. doi: 10.1016/j.jacr.2016.10.009. Epub 2016 Dec 9.

Abstract

Commonly conflated with sleepiness, fatigue is a distinct multidimensional condition with physical and mental effects. Fatigue in health care providers and any secondary effects on patient care are an important societal concern. As medical image interpretation is highly dependent on visual input, visual fatigue is of particular interest to radiologists. Humans analyze their surroundings with rapid eye movements called saccades, and fatigue decreases saccadic velocity. Oculomotor parameters may, therefore, be an objective and reproducible metric of fatigue and eye movement analysis can provide valuable insight into the etiology of fatigue-related error.

Keywords: Fatigue; error; eye tracking; fixations; saccades.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Asthenopia / diagnosis*
  • Asthenopia / physiopathology
  • Asthenopia / prevention & control*
  • Mental Fatigue / diagnosis*
  • Mental Fatigue / physiopathology
  • Mental Fatigue / prevention & control*
  • Occupational Diseases / diagnosis*
  • Occupational Diseases / physiopathology
  • Occupational Diseases / prevention & control*
  • Radiologists*
  • Risk Factors
  • United States
  • Work Schedule Tolerance