Digital Radiographs Vs. Conventional Radiographs - Page 1

The link below is for the January 2007 edition of the O.F.A.'s E-Newsletter, and compares the quality of digital radiographs with that of conventional radiographs when viewed by its team of radiologists. I have not seen this topic on the messageboard, so I thought it should be posted. While most veterinary offices still use conventional radiographic film and equipment, the digital equipment is in use in many areas. Please note there are now slightly different rules for the submission of the digital radiographic files compared to those taken by the conventional method. Read all about it at: http://www.offa.org/enewsjan2007.pdf Regards, Bob-O

The digital x-rays I have seen so far were stunning. You can see a lot more detail in a digital x-ray compared to the conventional film. A few years ago I saw my own tooth (about an inch I guess) blown up on a large monitor (22 inches or so) and the detail was impressive. Super crisp image. With the push of a button certain areas were colourized to pinpoint problem areas. Very impressive. The HD x-rays I have seen since then also impress because of the clarity of the image. I find it hard to believe that the OFA claims that there is little difference in the results either image would produce during an evaluation. It stands to reason that as the digital images provide more detail every minor change, such as even slight arthitic changes, are a lot more apparent and noticeable in the digital images compared to the conventional x-rays. In other words, they will show stuff that may go unnoticed by a conventional x-ray. Other things should be clearer too such as tightness/laxity of a joint... shape of the joints... I guess it would still depend how thoroughly the digital images are looked at. I was kind of wondering how that may affect the outcome. I assumed that as more details are revealed by this new technology we would see less excellent or a1s. I guess time will tell. BTW, the SV does not accept digital x-rays yet. Digital x-rays still need to be printed to film, but the CD can accompany the x-ray. Interestingly, if the film is not large enough (at least 30cm), the SV requires that the CD is sent as well. Makes one wonder why they cannot accept the CD to begin with... In time all that will surely change. The OFA did make a good point that only vets can submit these images.

D.H., I completely agree that the digital images would be much easier to examine for minute discrepancies, as one is not depending on the quality of the film, the quality of the process chemicals used, and the cleanliness/adjustment of the film developer. Poor-quality radiographs caused by poor equipment and materials are a thing of the past with the digital equipment. But with that being true, I think that the O.F.A. has to maintain a protocol to compare "apples to apples" and examine the digital images with a resolution no higher than that currently used for images produced on silver emulsion film. If they did otherwise, the finer details available from the improved images could certainly show more minor flaws, and I think you are correct in regards to the possibility of fewer Excellent or Good results from this point forward with the O.F.A. and the possibility of fewer "a" Normal results when the S.V. accepts digital images in the future. But, time will tell. I know that for several years now, the O.F.A. has scanned all film submitted for examination into a digital format for their archives. But of course these images are of lesser quality than the original radiographic film and are merely used for supporting data. These modern digital images allow the use of diagnostic tools that were previously not available. Interesting to say the least. Bob-O