DICOM Solutions  

The Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) standard was created by the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) to aid the distribution and viewing of medical images, such as CT scans, MRIs, and ultrasound. A single DICOM file contains a header, which stores information about the patient's name, the type of scan, and image dimensions, as well as the image data which can contain information in three dimensions. DICOM enables the integration of scanners, servers, workstations, printers, and network hardware from multiple manufacturers into a Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS). PACS replaces hard-copy based means of managing medical images, such as film archives. The most difficult area for PACS systems is interpreting the DICOM image format which is implemented slightly differently among different radiology equipment vendors.