In fluorescence guided surgery, data visualization represents a critical step between signal capture and display needed for clinical decisions informed by that signal. The diversity of methods for displaying surgical images are reviewed, and a particular focus is placed on electronically detected and visualized signals, as required for near-infrared or low concentration tracers. Factors driving the choices such as human perception, the need for rapid decision making in a surgical environment, and biases induced by display choices are outlined. Five practical suggestions are outlined for optimal display orientation, color map, transparency/alpha function, dynamic range compression, and color perception check.
Keywords: (170.1610) Clinical applications; (170.3880) Medical and biological imaging; (170.4730) Optical pathology; (260.2510) Fluorescence; (330.1730) Colorimetry; (330.5020) Perception psychology.