Large academic institution cuts incidental pulmonary embolism radiologist wait time by 78% with Aidoc AI triage

Incidental pulmonary embolisms (iPE) detected on routine outpatient abdominal CT scans — which do not include dedicated chest imaging — faced prolonged wait times before radiologist review. Delayed identification of these potentially life-threatening findings risked delayed intervention for patients.

Aidoc's AI-driven system was deployed to analyze 4,447 contrast-enhanced abdominal CT scans performed between January and July 2023. The system automatically flagged suspected iPE cases (3.2% of scans) and triggered priority notifications to radiologists, enabling faster triage without requiring dedicated chest CT protocols.

AI-flagged cases achieved a median radiologist review wait time of 37.7 minutes, compared to 168.5 minutes for non-flagged cases — a 78% reduction. The study concluded that AI-triggered notifications significantly enhance workflow efficiency and expedite reporting of incidental PE, potentially enabling more timely clinical interventions.

• AI prioritization can dramatically reduce time-to-review for incidental, life-threatening findings identified outside their primary imaging protocol.
• Deploying AI on routine abdominal CT scans extends vascular detection coverage beyond dedicated PE imaging workflows.
• A 3.2% flag rate suggests the system targets a clinically meaningful subset without overwhelming radiologist queues with false positives.