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11 - Human observers

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 March 2011

By
Harold L. Kundel
Edited by
R. Nick Bryan
R. Nick Bryan
Affiliation:
University of Pennsylvania
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Summary

Image quality

Image quality has a commonsense meaning that most people understand but it is difficult to find agreement about a precise technical definition. Most people rate image sharpness as the most desirable features of a high-quality image, but in medical imaging there is a general consensus that the final arbiter of image quality is diagnostic performance. A high-quality image is one that enables accurate diagnosis by an intelligent observer. There is also general agreement that it is important to be able to evaluate imaging systems objectively in order to set performance standards, optimize system parameters for maximum effectiveness, and determine which of two or more competing systems is best. The concept of task-dependent image quality is very important. The task provides a common ground for the comparison of imaging systems. For example, the performance of two systems that produce images with very different physical properties, such as magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography, can be compared as long as the diagnostic task is the same.

The two components of an imaging system

It is convenient to think of imaging systems as having two major components: the first converts a radiant signal received from the patient under study into a detected image, and the second consists of image processing devices that convert the detected image into a displayed image with an appearance that is matched to the intelligent decision maker, which for the most part is a human observer.

Type
Chapter
Information
Introduction to the Science of Medical Imaging , pp. 207 - 213
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2009

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References

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Eckstein, MP, Abbey, CK, Bochud, FO. A practical guide to model observers for visual detection in synthetic and natural noisy images. In: Beutel, J, Kundel, HL, Metter, RL, eds. Handbook of Medical Imaging. Vol 1. Bellingham, WA: SPIE Press, 2000: 593–628.Google Scholar

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  • Human observers
  • Edited by R. Nick Bryan, University of Pennsylvania
  • Book: Introduction to the Science of Medical Imaging
  • Online publication: 01 March 2011
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511994685.012
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  • Human observers
  • Edited by R. Nick Bryan, University of Pennsylvania
  • Book: Introduction to the Science of Medical Imaging
  • Online publication: 01 March 2011
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511994685.012
Available formats
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Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Human observers
  • Edited by R. Nick Bryan, University of Pennsylvania
  • Book: Introduction to the Science of Medical Imaging
  • Online publication: 01 March 2011
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511994685.012
Available formats
×