NIST GCR 03-844 Low-Cost Manufacturing Process Technology for Amorphous Silicon Detector Panels

NIST GCR 03-844
Low-Cost Manufacturing Process Technology for Amorphous Silicon Detector Panels: Applications in Digital Mammography and Radiography

4. Digital Chest Radiography and Other Applications

DIGITAL CHEST RADIOGRAPHY

In the United States, 68 million chest X-rays are performed each year withconventional photographic film. Chest X-rays are performed for the evaluation of lungs, heart, and surrounding anatomy. Pneumonia, heart failure, pleurisy, and lung cancer can be diagnosed or suspected on the basis of chest X-ray examination, along with other less common conditions. Traditionally, chest X-rays have been taken prior to employment, prior to surgery, or during immigration proceedings.

Digital radiography uses full-field a-Si detectors and electronic display monitors for routine chest X-rays. It is designed to work with Picture Archiving and Communications Systems (PACS) so that doctors at different locations can simultaneously view X-rays for double reading and remote consultation.

Medical and Productivity Benefits

Reduced radiation dosage. A recent study indicates that digital radiography achieved comparable image quality with conventional film radiography with 50 percent to 70 percent radiation dosage reduction (Rong et al., 2001).
Increased equipment throughput, thereby reducing the cost of operations and improving radiologist productivity (Fratt, 2002).
Facilitation of the development of teleradiology networks for delivering highquality chest radiography services to medically underserved populations.

Less expensive digital detectors from the ATP-funded LCM process are expected to deliver these benefits to healthcare facilities and patients that would not have received these benefits otherwise.

DIGITAL CARDIOLOGY

The objective of cardiac imaging is to take real-time pictures of the beating heart using fluoroscopic procedures. X-rays are pulsed at 30 frames per second, at which speed images are continuous to the human eye.

GE’s Innova 2000 Cardiovascular Imaging System uses a-Si detectors to view coronary artery blockages that could cause heart attacks or other serious health risks. With digital imaging capabilities, cardiologists can also view hard-to-see blood vessels, as well as devices used during cardiac catheterization procedures: stents, guide wires, and catheters. More that 4.5 million cardiac catheterization procedures are performed in the United States every year (General Electric, 2001a). GE claims the following potential benefits for digital cardiology with a-Si detectors:

Faster procedures.
Significantly lower radiation dosage.
Greater ability to see cardiovascular details.
Improved imaging for larger, more overweight patients.
Improved pediatric imaging at lower dosages (babies’ hearts beat faster and children have a greater adverse sensitivity to radiation than adults).

The market for cardiac suites is less cost sensitive than the markets for mammography and radiography systems. One reason is that cardiac suites are priced well over a million dollars and the detector is a relatively small component that does not significantly impact the overall system price. As a result, a 25 percent cost reduction for the digital detector component is not likely to result in additional equipment sales that would deliver the benefits of digital cardiology to patients who would not have had access to these benefits otherwise.

DIGITAL IMAGING FOR INDUSTRY AND HOMELAND SECURITY

Potential industrial and security applications for a-Si detector panels include:

Aircraft structural inspection.
Industrial nondestructive testing.
Airport and customs cargo inspection for homeland security.
Pipeline weld inspection.
Machine vision.

These industrial and security applications have lower performance requirements than medical imaging systems and are more price sensitive. At this time, it is not expected that a 20 to 30 percent detector panel cost reduction (tied to the ATP-funded LCM process) will result in additional industrial sales (Gilblom, 2001).

However, different device structures and additional fabrication experience, perhaps resulting from licensing the LCM process or from other ATP-funded projects, could lead to price reductions sufficiently deep to enable an increase in detector unit sales for industrial applications. Thus there is potential for diffusion of the benefits of digital detectors to industrial customers as well as for contributing to homeland security through improved airport and customs cargo inspection.

Return to Table of Contents or go to Section 5. Market Analysis.

Date created: April 25, 2003
Last updated: August 2, 2005

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