Digital
Radiography
By
Yasmein Maher EL-Beblawy
Lecturer of oral and maxillofacial radiology
• Digital radiography
incorporates computer
technology in the capture,
display, enhancement, and
storage of radiographic image
• Digital refers to the numeric
format that uses discrete
values, generally zero and one
A portion of the
unattenuated x-ray beam
Generation of x-rays. is captured by the image Form a latent image
receptor to
Viewed and interpreted Processed and converted
by the clinician into a real image
can be considered an
analog medium in which
differences in the size and
distribution of black
metallic silver result in a
continuous density
spectrum.
Digital images are numeric and
discrete in 2 ways, in terms of
(1) The spatial distribution of the
picture elements (pixels)
(2) The different shades of gray
of each of the pixels.
Picture element
o A digital image consists of a large
collection of individual pixels
o Each pixel has a row and column
coordinate that uniquely identify
its location in the matrix.
o The value assigned to a pixel
represents the intensity (gray
level) of the image at that location.
Matrix
❑A square arrangement of
numbers in columns and rows
o Size of the matrix determines the
size of the pixels
❑In digital imaging , the numbers
correspond to discrete pixel
values
Each box within the matrix
corresponds to:
• A specific location in the image
• A specific area of the patient’s tissue
Voxel
Voxel = Volumetric + pixel
A voxel ( volume element)
represents a value on a
regular grid in 3D
Bit depth
The number of bits or pieces of information
within each pixel
The total number of brightness levels or
shades of grey that can be assigned to any
given pixel in the digital image
Bit depth
o The number of gray tones a pixel can
produce is 2 to the power of the bit depth
bit depth
2
Example pixel with a bit depth of
8 = 28 or 256 shades of gray
o The gray level is a factor in determining
the image contrast resolution
•1-bit grayscale → 21=22^1 = 221=2
(Only black and white)
•2-bit grayscale → 22=42^2 = 422=4
(Shades: black, dark gray, light gray, white)
•8-bit grayscale → 28=2562^8 = 25628=256
(A common grayscale image format, where shades
range from 0 (black) to 255 (white))
•16-bit grayscale → 216=65,5362^{16} =
65,536216=65,536
(Used in high-quality imaging for finer detail)
• The formation of a digital image
requires several steps, beginning
with analog processes.
• At each pixel of an electronic
detector, the absorption of x-rays
generates a small voltage.
x-rays generate a voltage and vice
versa.
• At each pixel, the voltage can
fluctuate between a minimum and
maximum value and is therefore an
analog signal.
Production of a digital image requires a process called
Analog-to-digital conversion (ADC).
ADC consists of two steps:
(1) sampling
(2)quantization
Sampling Grouping of small range
of voltage values together as a single
value
Narrow sampling better mimics the
original signal but leads to larger
memory requirements for the
resulting digital image.
The signal is quantized
Every sampled signal is
assigned a value.
The computer organizes the pixels
in their proper locations and
displays a shade of gray that
corresponds to the number that was
assigned during the quantization
step.
Classification of digital radiography
1) Direct
2) Indirect
3) Semidirect
Digital Image Receptors
The digital receptor is the device that intercepts the
X-ray beam after it has passed through the patient’s
body and produces an image in digital form, that is, a
matrix of pixels, each with a numerical value.
This replaces the cassette containing intensifying
screens and film that is used in non-digital, film-
screen radiography.
Digital Image Receptors
Solid-state Photostimulable phosphor
technology (PSP) technology
• Computed radiography (CR).
• Digital radiography (DR).
Latent Scanning Digital
image device image
• Have the ability to generate a digital
image in the computer without any
other external device.
• This technology is sometimes referred to as
Storage phosphor
• In dentistry, intraoral solid-state The image information is Image plates is used
detectors are often called sensors. temporarily stored within the to differentiate them from
film and solid-state detectors.
phosphor.
CCD / CMOS
❑ Because CCD detectors are more sensitive to light than x-rays,
most manufacturers use a scintillating material coated directly on
the CCD surface or coupled to the surface by a fiberoptic plate.
❑ This scintillating material increases the x-ray absorption efficiency
of the detector.
o Gadolinium oxy bromide
o Cesium iodide
• Most detectors incorporate an electronic cable to transfer data to the computer.
Rapid availability of the image after exposure.
The image is read by transferring each row of pixel
charges from one pixel to the next in “bucket
brigade” fashion.
As a charge reaches the end of its row
It is transferred to a readout amplifier
Transmitted as a voltage to the ADC located
within or connected to the computer.
Voltages from each pixel are sampled and assigned a
numeric value representing a gray level (ADC).
Complementary Metal Oxide
Semiconductors
Silicon- based semiconductors
Each pixel is isolated from its neighboring
pixels and is directly connected to a
transistor.
Photostimulable Phosphor
The stimulable phosphor receptor
is like a conventional radiographic
intensifying screen in that it
absorbs X-ray photons and then
produces light.
In an intensifying screen, light is
produced immediately after X-ray
absorption.
•In a stimulable phosphor receptor,
there is a delay because the energy is
stored and released later when
stimulated.
Photostimulable Phosphor
PSP plates absorb and store energy from x-
rays
Release this energy
as light (phosphorescence) when stimulated
by another light of an appropriate WL.
Image processing
A red filter at the
photomultiplier tube
selectively removes the
stimulating laser light, and
the remaining green light is
detected and converted to a
varying voltage.
Digital Detector Characteristics
1- Contrast Resolution
The ability to distinguish different densities in the radiographic image
Better contrast resolution means clearer differentiation between tissues.
Factors affecting:
o Attenuation characteristics of the tissues imaged
o Capacity of the imaging system to distinguish differences in numbers of x-ray photons
and translate them into gray values
o Ability of the computer display to portray differences between gray levels
o Ability of the observer to recognize those differences
o Current digital detectors capture data at 8,
10, 12, or 16 bits.
o The bit depth is a power of 2.
o This means that the detector can theoretically
capture 256 (28) to 65,536 (216) different
attenuation levels.
o In practice, the actual number of meaningful attenuation levels that can
be captured is limited by inaccuracies in image acquisition—that is, noise.
Regardless of the number of
attenuation differences that a detector
can capture, conventional computer
monitors are capable of displaying a
gray scale of only 8 bits.
Because operating systems such as
Windows reserve many gray levels for
the display of system information, the
actual number of gray levels that can be
displayed on a monitor is 242.
Conventional
A more important limiting factor is or
the human visual system, which is digital
capable of distinguishing only about ???????
60 gray levels at any time under ideal
viewing conditions.
• Considering the typical viewing
environment in the dental operatory,
the actual number of gray levels that
can be distinguished decreases to
32.
Digital Detector Characteristics
• The capacity for distinguishing fine detail in
an image.
• Measured and reported in units of line pairs
per millimeter.
• With solid-state digital imaging systems,
the resolution limit is determined by the
pixel size
The the size of the pixel, the the maximally attainable resolution.
Clinical spatial resolution depends not only on detector
characteristics but also on:
o The size of the focal spot
o The source-to-object distance
o The object-to-image distance
Resolution in PSP systems is influenced by
• The thickness of the phosphor material.
Thicker phosphor layers Diffusion Resolution.
A thicker layer enhances x-ray absorption efficiency, resulting in a faster image
receptor.
• Diameter of the laser beam Resolution
❑ Current PSP systems are capable of providing more than 10 lp/mm of resolution.
Conventional
Detector Latitude
or digital ???
The ability of an image receptor to capture a
range of X-ray exposures.
Range of material thicknesses that can be seen on
the radiograph
Contrast Lattitude
Detector Latitude
A desirable quality in intraoral image receptors is the ability to
record a broad range of tissue attenuation differences—from
gingiva to enamel.
❑ At the same time, subtle differences in attenuation within these
tissues should be visually apparent.
Image Enhancement
o The term image enhancement implies that the adjusted image is an
improved version of the original one.
o Most image enhancement operations are applied to make the image
visually more appealing (subjective enhancement).
o This can be accomplished by increasing contrast, optimizing
brightness, improving sharpness, and reducing noise.
o Image enhancement operations are also dependent on viewer
preference.
Brightness and Contrast
Digital radiographs do not always use the full range of available gray values
effectively.
They can be relatively dark or light, and they can show too much contrast in certain
areas or not enough.
Although the brightness and contrast can be judged visually, the image histogram is
a convenient tool to determine which of the available gray values the image is using
The minimum and maximum values and the shape of the histogram indicate the
potential benefit of brightness- and contrast-enhancement operations.
Sharpening and Smoothing
• Improve image quality by removing blur or noise.
High-frequency noise (small-scale intensity
• Noise represents random intensity variation variations)
Low-frequency noise (gradual or large-scale intensity
variations).
• Filters that smooth an image are sometimes called noise or despeckling filters because they are
designed to remove high-frequency noise.
Digital Subtraction Radiography
Canceling out the complex anatomic background against
which this change occurs and reveals subtle changes.
❑ When 2 images of the same object are registered and the
image intensities of corresponding pixels are subtracted, a
uniform difference image is produced.
❑ If there is a change in the radiographic attenuation
between the baseline and follow-up examinations, this
change shows up as a brighter area when the change
represents gain and as a darker area when the change
represents loss, such as loss of enamel and dentin owing to
caries or loss of alveolar bone height with periodontitis.
Measurement
Digital imaging software provides numerous tools for image analysis. Digital rulers,
densitometers, and various other tools are readily available.
These tools are usually digital equivalents of existing tools used in endodontics,
orthodontics, periodontology, implantology, and other areas of dentistry.
Digital imaging has also added new tools that were not available with film-based
radiography.
The size and image intensity of any area within a digital radiograph can be measured.
Tools are also being developed for measuring the complexity of the trabecular bone
pattern.
Such measurements can be useful as screening tools for osteoporosis assessment and for
detecting other diseases.
Conventional vs digital radiography
1. Chemical processing is eliminated ( faster )
2. Images can be electronically transferred to other health care
provides
3. Requires less radiation
4. Modifications in image can be made
5. Can be stored indefinitely
Disadvantages of digital radiography
Advantages of digital
radiography ● Expensive
● Dose ● Sharpness
● Dynamic image ● Bulk and wired
● No need for dark room ● Durability of psp
● Real time image
● Quantitative analysis
● Representative method