Digitizing radiographic films: a simple way to evaluate indirect digital images

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: This study applied a simple method to evaluate the performance of three digital devices (two scanners and one digital camera) using the reproducibility of pixel values attributed to the same radiographic image. METHODS: Using the same capture parameters, a radiographic image was repeatedly digitized in order to determine the variability of pixel values given to the image throughout the digitization process. One coefficient value was obtained and was called pixel value reproducibility. RESULTS: A significant difference in pixel values was observed among the three devices for the digitized images (ANOVA, p<0.00001). There was significant pixel value variability at the same digitization conditions for one scanner and the digital camera. CONCLUSIONS: Digital devices may assign pixel values differently in consecutive digitization depending on the optical density of the radiographic image and the equipment. The pixel value reproducibility was not satisfactory as tested for two devices. It is maybe advisable knowing the digitization variations regarding pixel values whenever using digital radiography images in longitudinal clinical examinations.