Abstract
Computed tomography (CT) plays an essential role in clinical workflow to improve patient outcomes. However, access to CT imaging and specialist interpretation remains limited, particularly in rural, regional, remote (RRR), and other resource-limited settings. Recent advances in mobile CT, telehealth, and artificial intelligence (AI) provide opportunities to extend advanced imaging services to populations in RRR settings. This review examines: 1) mobile CT systems deployed in trucks, trailers, ambulances, and other mobile platforms; 2) telehealth technologies supporting CT-based healthcare; and 3) AI for CT that has received regulatory authorisation or is currently deployed in clinical practice. Applications are evaluated across four clinical functions: screening and diagnosis, patient monitoring, risk prediction, and intervention or therapeutic decision support. The review covers neurological, thoracic, cardiovascular, abdominal, oncological, musculoskeletal, and interventional imaging, with particular attention to stroke, cancer, and other image-guided treatment. Other factors such as regulatory status, deployment status, and estimated technology readiness (TRL) level are compared. Current evidence indicates that mobile CT, telehealth, and AI for conventional CT are individually relatively mature, but fully integration of these technologies remains less widely deployed and validated in the clinical settings. Key barriers include regulatory variation, domain shift, connectivity requirements, cost, workflow integration, cybersecurity, and limited evidence of patient-level benefit. Future research should prioritise prospective, multicentre evaluation of integrated CT systems in real-world and underserved clinical settings.
Abstract (translated)
URL
https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.14347
