Imaging and technology: current practice and future possibilities

The specification of medical imaging systems almost always defines the required resolution with which the system must produce images of patients. Indeed, resolution has almost become a Holy Grail for the imaging community, with clinicians always wanting to see more in the images. Imaging with electromagnetic radiations, currently has limits of about 0.5 mm for computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging. Resolution in conventional radiography of patients is usually 0.1 mm at best. The author discusses exciting new possibilities in advancing the resolution of medical imaging systems from a macroscopic level to the level of histology. These possibilities are all driven by technological advances in the imaging system design. If the technological advances of the previous decades can be matched in the next century, it will be exciting to hear about future developments in 2010 AD.