Saving a Reading Protocol

Introduction

When you save a reading protocol, Synapse saves the reading protocol match criteria and the viewport properties. See the Reading Protocol Overview for a list of the viewport properties.

For example, if you have hidden text overlays and you have saved the reading protocol, when Synapse displays a study using that reading protocol, the text overlays do not initially display.

You can save two types of reading protocols with different match criteria: Procedure or Modality.

Note:

When saving a reading protocol, Synapse saves viewports with Structured Reports (SR) as blank viewports. When you save a reading protocol with multiple rule cards in Synapse 7.1, and you attempt to open the same study from Synapse 4.x, you must disable the 7.1 reading protocol and open the study with a system default reading protocol in 4.x. See Enabling and Disabling Reading Protocols. When you save a reading protocol, Synapse disables the Reading Protocol drop-down list until the save operation completes. When the save operation completes, the rule cards display in the correct order.

Procedure-Based Reading Protocols

You can have multiple procedure codes associated with a user-created reading protocol. For example, if the procedure code for the current study is 74177, you can associate the additional procedure code 74178 with your new reading protocol.

Synapse bases the reading protocol match criteria on the modality and the procedure codes.

• Synapse bases the match criteria on the procedure code.
• You can save the same series into multiple viewports.

Modality-Based Reading Protocols

Modality-based reading protocols can only be saved through the Reading Protocol Editor. See Using the RPE from the Viewer.

You can create a reading protocol that matches on the modality only. Synapse bases the reading protocol match on the modality and places the images in the viewports based on the series index, such as Series 1, Series 2, and so on.

When you save a modality-based reading protocol, you can match the DICOM properties of each series in a study to determine which series goes into a specific viewport. Synapse primarily bases the reading protocol match on the modality and then uses the DICOM properties to determine which series displays in a particular viewport.

• Synapse bases the match criteria on modality.
• By default, Synapse saves the reading protocol based on the series index in the Viewer. You can change the series index using the Reading Protocol Editor.

Note:

Currently, Synapse saves a Modality reading protocol for procedures that do not exist on the home datasource.

Steps

1. In the Viewer, arrange the series as you want.
2. From the Reading Protocols drop-down list, select Save New Reading Protocol.
3. In the Save Reading Protocol dialog box, Synapse automatically generates a name for the reading protocol and appends the current user name. Change the name in the text box to the name of your choice.
4. Optional: Add a description in the Description text box.
5. The options for Type depend on modality:
• For all modalities except MG, select one the following for Type:

If you want to do this...	Complete these steps...
Match only on modality type.	Select Modality. Note: Modality-based reading protocols are only available when you use the Reading Protocol Editor and are not available when you save the protocol through the Viewer. Results: Synapse bases the reading protocol match on the modality and places the images in the viewports based on the series index, such as Series 1, Series 2, and so on.
Match on procedure type.	Select Procedure. Additional options display. Optional: Use the text box (Type procedure code to search) to filter the list of procedure codes. Select the procedure codes that you want the reading protocol to match against. Results: Synapse bases the reading protocol match criteria on the modality and the procedure codes.

• For MG only, select one of the following options for Type:

If you want to do this...	Complete these steps...
Match any procedure type.	Select Any Procedure. Results: Synapse bases the reading protocol match criteria on the modality.
Match selected procedure types.	Select Selected Procedure(s). Additional options display. Optional: Use the text box (Type procedure code to search) to filter the list of procedure codes. Select the procedure codes that you want the reading protocol to match against. Results: Synapse bases the reading protocol match criteria on the modality and the selected procedure codes.

6. Do one of the following:

   If you want to do this...	Choose this option...
   Make additional changes to the reading protocol using the Reading Protocol Editor.	Click Edit Reading Protocol. See Using the RPE from the Viewer and Using the RPE from the Viewer with MG Stacking.
   Save the reading protocol and return to the Viewer.	Click Save.
   Return to the Viewer without saving the reading protocol changes.	Click Cancel.

Additional Options

See Keyboard Shortcuts for Reading Protocols .

Related Topics

Reading Protocol Overview

Using the Reading Protocol Editor

Reading Protocol Management Options