Investigation of optimal display size for viewing T1‐weighted MR images of the brain using a digital contrast‐detail phantom

We clarified the relationship between the display size of MRI images and observer performance using a digital contrast‐detail (d‐CD) phantom. The d‐CD phantom was developed using Microsoft Visual Basic 2010 Express. It had a [Formula: see text] matrix in size and a total of 100 holes, whose diameter increased stepwise from 4 to 40 pixels with a 4‐pixel interval in the vertical direction; the contrast varied stepwise in the horizontal direction. The digital driving level (DDL) of the background, the width of the DDL, and the contrast were adjustable. These parameters were determined on the basis of the actual T1‐weighted magnetic resonance (MR) images of the brain. In this study, the DDL, width, and contrast were set to 85, 20, and 1, respectively. The observer performance study was performed for three different display sizes ([Formula: see text] as the enlarged size, [Formula: see text] as the original size, and [Formula: see text] as the reduced size) using a 2‐megapixel color liquid crystal display monitor, and it was analyzed using Friedman and Wilcoxon statistical tests. The observer performances for the original display [Formula: see text] and the reduced display sizes [Formula: see text] were superior to that observed for the enlarged size, whereas there was no significant difference between the original display and reduced display sizes [Formula: see text]. Evaluation with the digital phantom simulating MR imaging also revealed that the original and reduced display sizes were superior to the enlarged display size in observer performance. The d‐CD phantom enables a short‐term evaluation of observer performance and is useful in analyzing relationship between display size and observer performance. PACS number: 87.57.‐s