DICOM metadata quality auditing for medical imaging stakeholders characterisation: a pilot study

摘要

The metadata that are part of a vast number of medical imaging exams might be a valuable source for medical imaging stakeholder's characterisation. The study reported in this article aimed to assess the quality of Digital Imaging and Communication in Medicine (DICOM) metadata related to medical imaging stakeholder's characterisation, particularly in terms of what attributes are available and their usage trends. The DICOM metadata of medical imaging exams carried out in a medium size hospital during a one-year period (i.e. 5144417 images, corresponding to 97 612 exams performed on 61 256 patients) were analysed. The results show that the use of the DICOM attributes for health care stakeholder's characterisation varies with the medical imaging modalities, concerning the number of available attributes, and respective usage levels and data quality. Therefore, the filling in of DICOM metadata could be optimised, which may be relevant for the clinical practice as well as for the development of data bases that might support clinical research.