[A comparison between traditional mammography and digital with storage phosphors]

Area of Science:

• Radiology
• Medical Imaging
• Diagnostic Imaging

Background:

• Mammography is a crucial tool for breast cancer screening.
• Advancements in digital mammography aim to improve image quality and diagnostic accuracy.
• Storage phosphor technology represents a digital imaging approach for mammography.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the image quality of conventional mammography with digital mammography using storage phosphors.
• To evaluate the impact of different exposure factors on image quality in both modalities.
• To assess the diagnostic performance of digital mammography for nodular lesions and microcalcifications.

Main Methods:

• Comparison of conventional and digital mammographic images using storage phosphors on phantoms and in vivo.
• Phantom studies involved varying kilovoltage (kV) and milliampere-seconds (mAs) settings.
• In vivo study included 200 patients, with subsequent evaluation by three expert radiologists assessing contrast and spatial resolution.

Main Results:

• Digital mammography demonstrated superior contrast and enhancement of nodular lesions.
• Depiction of microcalcifications was inferior in digital mammography, particularly at reduced radiation doses.
• A slight loss of recognizable details was observed in digital images only when mAs was reduced by 30%.

Conclusions:

• Digital mammography with storage phosphors provides improved contrast for nodular lesions.
• Conventional mammography remains superior for microcalcification depiction, especially at lower radiation doses.
• Optimization of exposure factors is crucial for digital mammography to maintain image quality for all breast imaging features.