Imaging Information Systems

Abstract

AbstractThe earliest radiology information systems (RISs) were developed in the late 1960s to support administrative tasks such as scheduling and workflow; in 1978, leading developers joined together to form what became the dominant RIS. Widely deployed today, the RIS is being integrated into the electronic health record; reporting functions are supported by speech recognition or by structured reporting. The 1980s saw the development of picture archival and communication systems (PACS) to store the multiplicity of images generated by new technologies, notably computerized tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and make them available for interactive viewing on special display terminals. In the early 1990s, PACSs were installed in Department of Defense and Veterans Administration facilities. Today, PACS are blending with teleradiology to support subspecialists in interpreting examinations 24 h a day. Workflow systems that manage RIS and PACS information across multiple hospitals require routing much like the PACS of the early days. Vendor neutral archives can offer centralized storage and respond to queries from any PACS/RIS. In radiology, the image component is governed by the standard known as Digital Communications in Medicine (DICOM); activities such as orders, reports, and billing are communicated by Health Level 7. As imaging information systems continue to evolve, preferred implementations for specific tasks are being defined under the Integrating the Healthcare Enterprise (IHE); computer algorithms are being developed to aid in the adoption of Computer Aided Diagnosis (CAD); and visualization and measurements based on 3D imaging hold promise for some diagnostic and therapeutic tasks.Keywords Imaging information system s Radiology information system s (RIS ) Computer aided diagnosis (CAD ) Computerized tomography (CT ) Digital communications in medicine (DICOM ) Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI ) Picture archival and communications system s (PACS ) Radiology information system (RIS ) Vendor neutral archive (VNA )