How a Medical LCD Display Differs from a Commercial-Grade LCD Monitor

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by iTech Company

For the past few years, there are lots of debates on whether a consumer-grade LCD display can really compete with the medical-grade display for diagnostic imaging reads. The features and accuracy of these two types of LCDs can impact the radiologist’s diagnostic ability. Although consumer-grade flat panel displays continue to evolve and are already integrated with various functionalities, medical LCD displays are winning the debate as of now and have been the top choice for many medical practitioners. Let’s try to compare these two different types of monitor displays.

Medical LCDs have inherent component and manufacturing quality process specifically designed for medical applications, making it superior from commercial-grade monitors when deployed in hospitals and healthcare facilities. These medical-grade imaging solutions meet various requirements for image quality, grayscale and colour viewing. It also conforms to DICOM and other industry standards.

Greater luminance stability

Just like any other device, LCD displays age from the moment they are first used. With medical displays, you’ll have greater luminance stability as you use it over time. This ensures that the medical practitioners will be provided with high quality of image presentation and diagnostic yield as such displays have stable and constant brightness throughout their useful life. This quality of LCD for medical applications is very important for the radiologist in order to determine accurately the patient’s condition.

Accurately distinguish close colours from each other

Meanwhile, colour quality, contrast and calibration are also other important features that are being integrated in medical LCDs. This type of monitors are specifically designed to accurately distinguish close colours from each other, even at the extremes. With a typical monitor, it handles the greyscale around the blacks and whites almost the same. This failure to display the colours and shades correctly might pose a problem when a scan might show a slightly darker patch. With a poorly-calibrated monitor, this might just fade into the background which is nearly, but not quite the same colour. Thus, with a medical-grade monitor, the quality of colour and its calibration are considered carefully in its design and functionality.

Display more colours

Medical-grade monitors also display more colours as compared to commercial-grade LCDs. Detecting more colours allows for greater accuracy for matching an image and clinicians use this precise coloration judgments for guidance through a medical procedure or when making a diagnosis. While accuracy is critical in these applications, the more colours available, the better.

Complies with the industry standards

On the other hand, medical displays conform to the exacting safety standards that are set by governing bodies in the industry. These include the use environment, proximity to patients and FDA review and acceptance standards. It also comply with DICOM (Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine) standards which sets the rules for handling, storing, printing, and transmitting information in medical imaging. DICOM has been essential to the development of modern radiological imaging including ultrasonography, magnetic resonance imaging, computed tomography, radiography, and radiation therapy.

All in all, medical displays are compliant to highly rigorous standards, incorporate very sophisticated quality assurance control systems and software, and DICOM-compliant and calibrated. Such features make medical displays ideally suited for the demands of hospital applications and superior to those displays designed and manufactured for commercial use. At iTech Company, we offer a range of medical-grade LCD displays which are ideal for healthcare applications. Call us for more info of our products and services.