TELERADIOLOGY - A REVIEW

Teleradiology, like telemedicine generally, has arisen because of the shift to digital communication and the demand for equal access to medi cal care. Unlike much of telemedicine, teleradiology can be shown to b e cost-effective in many situations, particularly if the alternatives are to transport the X-ray film to a radiologist or to use the service s of a visiting radiologist ('circuit riding'). A teleradiology system consists of an image-acquisition section and an image-display section , connected by a communications network. Considerable technical and cl inical standardization work has been carried out (e.g. by the American College of Radiology) and commercial teleradiology systems are now av ailable from a number of manufacturers. Up to 1994, more than 7000 tel eradiology systems had been sold by the two largest manufacturers. Tec hnology trends suggest that it will soon be common for clinicians to v iew digital radiographs from outside radiology departments and probabl y from outside a hospital environment as well.