Recent developments digital thorax radiography

All three currently commercially available systems for digital radiography of the chest such as the selenium drum, storage phosphor plates and the fia t panel direct detector systems provide an excellent image quality that is at least equivalent or superior to that of conventional film. Reasons for t hat are the continuously improved detective or dose efficiency of the detec tor systems and an improved image processing. The new direct detector syste ms have the largest potential for dose reduction while storage phosphor and selenium radiographs are usually obtained with a dose comparable to that o f a 400 speed system. Improved image processing algorithms allow for the pr oduction of digital images that are adapted to the conventional image chara cteristics within the lung regions combined with an increased transparency of the high absorption areas such as the retrocardial and retrodiaphragmati c regions.