DICOM image quantification secondary capture (DICOM IQSC) integrated with numeric results, regions, and curves: implementation and applications in nuclear medicine

Abstract

In this paper, we describe an enhanced DICOM Secondary Capture (SC) that integrates Image Quantification (IQ) results, Regions of Interest (ROIs), and Time Activity Curves (TACs) with screen shots by embedding extra medical imaging information into a standard DICOM header. A software toolkit of DICOM IQSC has been developed to implement the SC-centered information integration of quantitative analysis for routine practice of nuclear medicine. Primary experiments show that the DICOM IQSC method is simple and easy to implement seamlessly integrating post-processing workstations with PACS for archiving and retrieving IQ information. Additional DICOM IQSC applications in routine nuclear medicine and clinic research are also discussed.