Assessment of Computed Radiography versus Digital Radiography Image Quality in Chest Imaging at Federal Teaching Hospital Gombe

The comparative image quality performance of computed radiography and direct digital radiography systems for chest imaging has significant implications for disease detection accuracy, radiation dose efficiency, and equipment replacement prioritisation in resource-limited Nigerian hospitals transitioning to full digital imaging. Federal Teaching Hospital Gombe in Gombe State, North East Nigeria, operates both CR and DR systems, providing an institutional comparison opportunity. This study compares the image quality of chest radiographs acquired on computed radiography and digital radiography systems at Federal Teaching Hospital Gombe. A prospective comparative design is employed, acquiring paired chest radiographs on both systems for 120 consecutive adult patients under identical clinical presentation conditions. Image quality is evaluated by three experienced radiologists using a five-point Likert quality scale assessing sharpness, contrast, noise, and diagnostic acceptability for specific anatomical features. Signal-to-noise ratios are computed from phantom measurements. Paired Wilcoxon signed-rank tests comparing quality scores across systems are performed in SPSS. Literature from North East Nigerian hospital radiology settings identifies DR systems as consistently producing superior image quality metrics for chest radiography compared to CR, particularly for mediastinal border definition and lung field detail. The European Commission quality criteria for chest radiography and the IAEA quality assurance publication provide the analytical benchmarks. Findings are expected to demonstrate statistically significant superiority of DR image quality across all evaluated criteria. Recommendations address DR system prioritisation in equipment upgrade planning at FTH Gombe. Keywords: computed radiography, digital radiography, image quality, chest imaging, Gombe State.