Optimizing techniques in screen-film mammography.

This article provides a practical approach to the steps needed to optimize mammography techniques. Those steps consist of a series of activities that begin with the choice of mammography film, then choosing the optimum film processing for that film type, selecting the appropriate technique factors for exposure, and the proper viewing of processed mammography films. In each area, the basic physics underlying film and film processing, mammography equipment performance, image contrast, and image display, are used to determine optimized mammography techniques.