A review of database management systems suitable for neuroimaging

This study comprises a technical assessment of Database Management Systems (DBMS), which may be of use in the analysis of data obtained from human bra in mapping procedures. Due to the large expansion of the neuroimaging field , the use of specialized database software to store and process neuroimages and their attached components is inevitable. The advent of multiple softwa re products, a wealth of technical terms and a wide variety of other applic ations make the choice of a suitable program sometimes difficult. Through t he inclusion of some basic and pertinent criteria (e.g., performance, ease of opening, standardization and portability), we present a descriptive comp arison of 12 DBMSs currently available in the commercial and public domain. We have compared and tested three main architecture models which are curre ntly available and assessed their potential applications for imaging purpos es: relational, object-oriented, and hybrid. The findings of our study demo nstrated that the Illustra(TM) software was the best suited for a neuroimag ing environment because of its intrinsic ability to handle complex and larg e objects, such as 3D volumes or geometric structures.