Introduction

Digital radiology is like teenage sex. It’s on everyone’s mind. Everyone is talking about it, but is anyone doing it? Understanding the new technology and its application to everyday imaging is complicated at best. The questions asked about the relevancy of the technology in today’s cost conscious healthcare market seem to fade in the rush to implement the technology regardless of the cost. It can be compared to the switch from the plastic medium of the 78 and 45 records to the music CD. At the time, the consumer was not given a choice, and the music industry said we would receive better reproduction of sound if we went digital. Long after the conversion had been made, and the old 78 and 45 records had become collector items, the industry admitted that the sound was worse on a CD than in the record medium. There had not been a whole lot gained by the switch. But nothing changed, and we continue with inferior sound produced and delivered on the music CD. So, how is it we are considering giving up film, the best recording medium available, and switching to an electronic recording medium?