Cardiac Imaging in the Digital Age: A Multidisciplinary Intersection of Radiology, Pharmacy, Informatics, and Echocardiography

Abstract

During the past two decades, the advent of digital technologies has transformed the practice of cardiac imaging and redefined models of care. In this multidisciplinary overview, I present the global changes, challenges, and opportunities of cardiac imaging in the digital era. The scope of the discussion spans innovations in radiology, pharmacy, informatics, and echocardiography. The rapid integration of artificial intelligence and digital health—including telemedicine and electronic patient records—across the entire imaging ecosystem amplifies the urgency of this exploration. The modern cardiologist must grapple with these developments and their implications for patient care. A series of overarching questions captures the essence of these explorations: What are the key data sources, standards, metadata, analytics, and governance? What imaging modalities and digital integration concerns require attention? How can pharmacist expertise enhance the safe and effective use of contrast agents? What team compositions, workflows, and care pathways optimize collaboration, communication, and patient-centered outcomes? What opportunities and challenges do artificial intelligence and decision support systems present? What tools, technologies, and knowledge facilitate the transition to digital-to-digital workflows? What safety, privacy, and ethical considerations must inform the use of imaging-related data and artificial intelligence? What competencies underpin pre- and post-graduate training for a digitally informed workforce? What emerging trends, technologies, and research questions shape the horizon of cardiac imaging? As cardiologists reckon with these issues, an expansive set of scholarly works will survey the transformations, impacts, and futures of cardiac imaging in the digital age (Pepe et al., 2023) ; (Seetharam et al., 2020) ; (Westwood et al., 2023).