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Picture archiving and communication systems (PACS) have been quite successful at the University of Florida in the areas of CT, MR, and nuclear medicine. In each case, although we have not always been able to provide the optimal level of performance, we have been able to solve a problem and the systems are used extensively. Ultrasound images are required in a number of locations and the multiformat camera print capability was no longer adequate for the growing volume in the ultrasound section. Although we were certain we could successfully implement PACS for ultrasound, new forces in health care dictate that we justify our system in terms of cost. We analyzed the feasibility of a PACS solution for ultrasound and designed a system that meets our needs and is cost effective. We evaluated the ultrasound operation in terms of image acquisition patterns and throughput requirements. An inventory of existing and PACS equipment was made to determine the feasibility of interfacing the two systems. Commercial systems were evaluated for functionality and cost and a system was designed to meet our needs. The only way to achieve our goal of installing a cost effective ultrasound PACS was to eliminate film and use the cost savings to offset the cost of new equipment and development. We designed a system that could be produced using inexpensive components and existing hardware and software to meet our needs. A commercial vendor was chosen to provide the ultrasound acquisition. The Radiology Information System interface used at the University provides the necessary data to build a DICOM header, and an existing DICOM server routes the images to the appropriate workstations, archives, and printers. Additional storage is added to an existing archive to accommodate the ultrasound images and two existing workstations are evaluated for use in ultrasound.
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