Telepathology

Telepathology can be described as the electronic transmission of digital images of pathology for education, examination, diagnosis, or conference. Since its first proof-of-concept demonstration in 1968, this technology has resulted in close to 600 magazines and has been used with ever-growing rate throughout the world. From a medical point of view, telepathology has developed from point-to-point transmission of live or near-live video images, to the capture of digital images of preferred  microscopic fields for storage and future transmission, to robotic control of the microscope with quick point-to-point transmission, to improvement of software that simplifies Web-based consultations and interactions, to the generation of virtual slides that characterize the entire slide for stress-free Web site access or for storage. The basic machineries of a telepathology system are a microscope with an attached digital camera connected to a computer. Basic systems deliver an image that can be stored and sent via e-mail or the Internet to a professional for consultation. The cost and difficulty of a basic simple system increases with the accumulation of a robotic microscope and point-to-point transmission but permits the observer to control slide movement, concentration, and use objective selection. Virtual-slide technology, the most expensive of the possibilities for telepathology, forms a particular single image of a glass slide. These tools combine an objective (310 to340) with computerized stage and digital camera with the computer power to promptly obtain a sequence of images that are automatically stitched together in software and compressed to form a single image file of the slide. All of these systems are presently used for all phases of telepathology, but each differs in its applicability in providing pathology financial assistance for countries in the developing world or in regions with limited resources.