Thermography software shows a breast thermographic image
Data from a medical thermography camera, such as the Meditherm IRIS 7.5 camera, is color mapped before being sent to the EMI Interpretation Service. What is color mapping?
When a patient comes in for a thermographic scan, him or her starts by getting acclimated to the room temperature. The skin’s surface needs to adjust to the temperature in the room before thermographic images are taken. The patient is asked to disrobe and wait in the examination room for around 10 minutes before beginning the thermographic scan. The desired room temperature is around 70 degrees.
Once the patient is acclimated, the scanning process begins. The purpose it to measure the patient’s body temperature for abnormal heat patterns that indicate abnormal function in the body. No radiaiton is used, it merely scans for the heat the body is emitting.
In one click, the medical thermographic camera takes over 80K temperature readings. With digital technology, that thermal data creates a thermal map instantly on the computer screen. First, the thermographer uses the medical thermographic camera to take several snapshots of the patient looking for stability in the colors and patterns assuring the patient has acclimated. If the displayed color patterns are not stable, then the patient needs more time to acclimate.
The body is symmetrical left to right. When a heat pattern on the body is asymmetrical (the two sides don’t match), that may indicate abnormal function. The body becomes its own control. It is important to provide comparative images to the EMI interpretation service, for contra-lateral analysis. The contralateral scans need to be saved within the same temperature range.
The human body’s physiology generally will fall within an 8-degree centigrade temperature range. This is the range that is required by EMI Interpretation service. This camera is specifically designed for medical thermography. It is more refined than the gross temperature differences shown by industrial thermography cameras that detect heat loss from windows and doors.
The preferred thermal map for medical interpretation is a 16-color system. Every 1/2 degree of the 8 degree range, is assigned a color. At the cooler end of the temperature range, we have cooler looking colors (black, blues) and at the warmer end, we have yellows and reds, ending with white. In the image, there is an 8-degree difference between a black pixel on the screen and a white pixel.
It is the thermographer’s job to fine-tune the scans to display as many colors in the color range as possible. This makes it easier for the medical doctors at EMI to read the patterns, as well as the colors. They are better able to interpret any abnormal function and write about them in their interpretation.
The scan can be shown in various color maps. But the underlying temperature data is not altered. Choosing a different “look” doesn’t change the data. The thermologists use additional software to display the actual temperature readings and statistical data (differentials from left to right) If the differentials are beyond normal parameters the asymmetric thermal activity may indicate abnormal function in the area.
Learn more about our medical thermography camera and the EMI Interpretation Service.
RSS - Subscribe