Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare > Volume 15, Number 3 > Pp. 145-149

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PAPERS

A portable dental image viewer using a mobile network to provide a tele-dental service

Wonse Park ^*, Dong-Keun Kim , Jung-Chae Kim , Kee-Deog Kim ^* and Sun K Yoo  

^* Department of General Dentistry, Human Identification Research Center, Yonsei University College of Dentistry, Seoul; Department of Medical Engineering, Center for Emergency Medical Informatics, Brain Korea 21 Project for Medical Science, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea

Correspondence: Professor Sun K Yoo, Department of Medical Engineering, Yonsei University College of Medicine, 134 Sinchon-dong, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul 120–752, Korea (Fax: +82 2 363 9923; Email: sunkyoo{at}yuhs.ac)

We tested three imaging devices for suitability in emergency dental situations for telemedicine. The three devices were a special-purpose oral camera, a digital single lens reflex (DSLR) camera, and the built-in camera of a mobile phone. A total of 20 subjects volunteered to take part in the study. We simulated five different conditions which could affect the quality of the image and measured image transmission times across two widely available mobile networks (a CDMA-based 3G network and a Wireless Broadband Network, WiBRO). The DSLR produced the best quality images, although it was a relatively large device and not easy to use. The oral camera failed to give satisfactory images under certain conditions (i.e. without extra lighting, out of focus and head motion). In contrast, the mobile phone based camera was very easy to use and to handle, and it gave good information for initial diagnosis, even at high compression ratios. If the image acquisition conditions are carefully set up, this device might be the best for emergency dental trauma situations.

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