A guideline to medical photography: a perspective on digital photography in an orthopaedic setting.

PURPOSE

Quality photographs are essential for clinical documentation, research, and publication in scientific journals and teaching. Oftentimes, non-ideal lighting and a sterile environment restrict the medical photographer, resulting in lower-quality photographs. This article aims to provide a clear and comprehensible guideline for medical photography in an orthopaedic setting.

METHODS

This article is based on extensive photographic involvement in operating and laboratory settings, in close collaboration with medical professionals from the Steadman Clinic (Vail, Colorado, USA), Gothenburg University (Göteborg, Sweden) and Erasmus MC (Rotterdam, the Netherlands). Background literature was searched through Google Scholar and PubMed.

RESULTS

Three relevant journal articles, and one book on medical photography, were used to write this paper. Seventeen Internet articles were used for background information.

CONCLUSION

A relevant, up-to-date and comprehensive guideline to medical photography for medical professionals, with or without photographic experience, is provided.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Expert opinion, Level V.