Non-specific
Dr Daniel J Bell ◉ et al.
Non-specific is a widely-used term in radiology, and clinical medicine in general.
Non-specific is used for a symptom, sign, test result, radiological finding, etc., that does not point towards a specific diagnosis or etiology. For example, a high T2 signal lesion of the white matter on an MRI brain is a non-specific finding as the number of possible causes is broad.
Nevertheless, as was pointed out in a recent article, stating that a radiological finding is non-specific does not remove the responsibility of the reporting radiologist to suggest differential diagnoses, or further appropriate management 1.
Related Radiopaedia articles
Terms used in radiology
- general
- ancillary
- artifact
- corner of the film
- diagnosis of exclusion
- epiphenomenon
- filling defect
- forme fruste
- gamut
- geographic
- gold standard
- heterogeneous vs heterogenous
- iatrogenic
- idiopathic
- incidentaloma
- in extremis
- natural history
- non-specific
- prodrome
- protean
- self-limiting
- sequela
- serpiginous
- sine qua non
- subclinical disease
- syndrome
- pathology
- CNS
- chest
- epidemiology
- gastrointestinal
- genetics
- musculoskeletal
- oncology
Unable to process the form. Check for errors and try again.