There’s a common belief in medicine that orthopedic surgeons often do not read radiology reports, instead reaching straight for the images. But a handful of experts recently revealed what the specialty wants from its radiologist peers, publishing their guidance in the Journal of Clinical Orthopedics and Trauma.

Surgeons want an accurate and timely interpretation of scans, one that’s presented in a format allowing for easy analysis or clarification of each patient’s condition. A quality report should provide supporting evidence in the management of patients, correlate with their clinical situation, and provide a suggestive or list of differential diagnoses.

Trauma and orthopedic surgeon Karthikeyan Iyengar and co-authors in the field also urged colleagues to play their own part in improving the quality of reports.

“It is imperative that the referring clinician indicates the pertinent query they would like answered,” Iyengar, with the Southport and Ormskirk National Health Service Trust in the United Kingdom, and colleagues concluded. “This will allow focused reporting on the part of the reporting radiologist. An effective radiology report, communicated with clarity, will help the referring surgeon in the decision-making process of their patients.”