Medical care is changing rapidly， and imaging systems based on multicore DSPs

　　effectively complement today’s trends.

　　Traditionally， due to cost and sheer size， access to sophisticated medical

　　diagnostic systems has been found mostly in densely populated urban areas，

　　where expert diagnosticians and technicians are available to operate them. Recent

　　advances in embedded processor technology have made it possible for high quality

　　and highly capable medical imaging systems to become much more portable and

　　cost efficient. With sophisticated medical imaging equipment available in smaller

　　clinics in outlying and rural areas， local technicians could telecommunicate

　　diagnostic images to urban centers， where experts provide recommendations and

　　real-time support. As a result， medical diagnosis can now be brought to the patient，

　　rather than transporting a patient with a life-threatening condition to a medical

　　imaging facility.

　　Other issues currently being discussed in the medical field are also well served

　　by advances in processor capabilities. In some cases， these issues are at odds with

　　one another. For example， many medical experts are calling for improved image

　　quality， while at the same time seeking to reduce exposure to the harmful radiation

　　that results from X-rays and nuclear imaging techniques. In the past， image

　　quality could only be improved if radiation was increased， or through an invasive

　　procedure.

　　Imaging systems with multicore DSPs offer another alternative， where innovative

　　and efficient image-enhancement techniques such as edge detection， contrast

　　enhancement， noise filtering， etc. can be easily programmed into one or more DSP

　　cores to improve image quality without increasing the level of radiation or even make

　　up for a decrease in radiation exposure to the patient.