Digital subtraction angiography in the community hospital.

Although digital angiography may involve the same physician processes in the university as in the community hospital, it can be seen that the indications, approaches, and utility of DSA are somewhat different in the two environments. DSA is presently in a state of change, in part because of the maturing of other modalities and also because of the present emphasis on cost-saving in medical imaging. As referring physicians become used to digital arteriographic images, more and more procedures will be performed with DSA. We believe the DSA will have an important role in the community hospital for years to come. Its emergence as the first of the "conventional" imaging techniques to be digitized can be seen as an initial step toward the total digital imaging department of the future.