Avaliação da qualidade da imagem através da análise da relação sinal-ruído e contraste-ruído em um sistema de mamografia digital

Abstract

Breast cancer is the most common type of cancer among women, for this reason the Ministry of Health recommends that mammography be performed every two years on women between 50 and 69 years old. Since the main objective of mammography as a screening method is to reduce the mortality rate due to the increase in cases detected in early stages of the disease. However, the effectiveness of the exam is directly related to the quality and performance of the equipment. Thus, the National Quality Program in Mammography (PNQM) was created in order to improve the quality of mammograms, being mandatory for all services in Brazil. Therefore, this study aims to evaluate the results obtained through the quality control of the digital mammographic image, to ensure the consistency of the digital image receiver by evaluating the signal-to-noise ratio (RSR) and contrast-to-noise ratio (RCR) of the image receiver. . Data collection took place weekly through the image quality test performed in the sector's routine, from June 2019 to March 2020, as recommended by the manufacturer. The data found are within the limit proposed by the manufacturer which informs that the RSR must be greater than 40 and the RCR must be within ± 15% of the baseline. Consequently, the mammograph used produces images suitable for making reliable reports.