Image compression and data integrity in confocal microscopy

To manage large volumes of image data generated routinely using real-time confocal microscopy, compressing image data using a lossy algorithm prior to sustained video rate transferring and/or storing is proposed. Test criteria for determining the acceptability of uncompressed data, both qualitatively and quantitatively, are described, and an empirical demonstration of the use of lossy compression in data management is provided. It is found that, if appropriately used, the lossy compression scheme could retain all the useful information in the data while providing better compression ratios (memory for the original/ memory for the compressed) when compared with a lossless scheme.