Purpose: To assess a patient-oriented digital optical card (OC) for documentation and communication of images using the analysis of breast microcalcifications to illustrate its resolution power.
Methods: Fifty film mammograms with histologically proved clustered microcalcifications were digitized using a 5 lp/mm CCD-scanner. A region of interest containing the cluster was selected for documentation on an OC as an overview OC-image and as a magnified OC-image (5 lp/mm). The shape (spherical/nonspherical) as well as the total number of microcalcifications were quantitatively analyzed by 2 radiologists.
Results: The detection rate for total number of overall and spherical microcalcifications using digital media was significantly reduced (p < 0.01) compared to analog mammography. There were no significant differences in the detection rate of nonspherical microcalcifications between film mammograms (100%) and magnified section OC-images (92.7%). The overview OC-image revealed 72% of those calcifications (p < 0.01).
Conclusion: According to our results, this technology is not appropriate for diagnosis of breast microcalcifications, but may be a promising communication digital medium for transmitting an image/report unit to referring physicians.