In vitro perception of low-contrast features in digital, film, and digitized dental radiographs: A receiver operating characteristic analysis

Objective To compare experimentally the image quality of charged-coupled device (CCD)-based digital, flatbed scanner digitized, and dental film radiographs. Study design High-contrast standardized radiographs of an aluminum step wedge containing boreholes were obtained on dental radiographic film (F) and a CCD receptor (D). Digitization (S) was done with a flatbed scanner. Each radiograph was separated into 23 single images, 18 of which showed a dark spot. Thirty observers indicated their confidence on the visibility of the spots for a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. Results Mean Az values (area beneath the ROC curves) differed significantly (P < .05), being highest for D …