scope would predict
the locations of
potential lesions
and draw a box
around those
mucosal areas so
that the physician
can take a closer
look.
AI will probably
be available with
the next generation
of scopes, says Dr.
Rex. But will it be
an add-on, or will there be special AI scopes? Also, he says ques-
tions remain about its actual sensitivity and specificity, or how
often it will produce false positives. "Bottom line, we don't have
enough data right now to know how good [AI is] going to be in the
next couple years," says Dr. Rex. "Will the technology eventually
be good enough to make it standard? Absolutely. But we still have
to see results from clinical trials before that happens."
Expanding the scope
CMS is increasingly using ADR as a reference for evaluating and com-
pensating gastroenterologists. According to CMS, physicians should
have an ADR of at least 20% in women and 30% in men. While you can
justifiably debate the fairness and accuracy of the metric — given the
variables in patient age, susceptibility and other factors that individual
doctors experience in their unique practices — it's the new reality. But
it's also true that, from a patient care perspective, the more polyps
6 2 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • A P R I L 2 0 1 9
CLEARLY BETTER High-definition imaging is just one of the advancements that have
improved the effectiveness of colonoscopy screenings.
