A low cost PACS for angiography images

A low cost Picture Archiving and Communications System (PACS) for coronary Angiography images has been developed. The system allows direct on-line department and even hospital-wide availability of the angiographic image sequences. The system has been built with low cost PC-based components. It provides an interface to every standard PC-based DICOM image viewer. Osiris and a custom-built image viewer are currently in use. The first version of this system has been introduced and installed in the Thoraxcenters of Rotterdam and Groningen in the summer of 1997. An extension in progress is usage of this PACS as a base for the exchange of DICOM image data sets between local referring cardiac centers. Besides, this paper addresses the clinical usage and the functional and financial benefits of the system.