I note that the CT image on the cover of the BMJ of 14th February has
been coloured in. I have seen this often before in general practice
magazines, but I am surprised that it is felt necessary in a scientific
journal. Are CT scans not felt visually stimulating enough? To arbitrarily
add colour to a black and white dataset is essentially manipulating data
to fit the result one wishes to show. If the colours are intended to
introduce clarity then use of green and brown together does not aid
interpretation for the 10% of the male population who are colour blind. I
note that the image has also been incorrectly labeled as an MRI scan.
Future editions of the BMJ may benefit from the editiorial input of a
radiologist.
Rapid Response:
Artificial Colouring in CT scans
I note that the CT image on the cover of the BMJ of 14th February has
been coloured in. I have seen this often before in general practice
magazines, but I am surprised that it is felt necessary in a scientific
journal. Are CT scans not felt visually stimulating enough? To arbitrarily
add colour to a black and white dataset is essentially manipulating data
to fit the result one wishes to show. If the colours are intended to
introduce clarity then use of green and brown together does not aid
interpretation for the 10% of the male population who are colour blind. I
note that the image has also been incorrectly labeled as an MRI scan.
Future editions of the BMJ may benefit from the editiorial input of a
radiologist.
Competing interests:
None declared
Competing interests: No competing interests