Medical imaging quality settings Imagine stepping inside a patient’s body to examine their CT or MRI scan from the inside out - Virtual Reality is turning that into a reality. But to make this immersive experience seamless and effective, especially in VR, it's essential to understand how volumetric data is processed and how quality settings influence rendering performance. Medical imaging settings in Medicalholodeck You can set default rendering options in the settings panel on the left. Use the quality for volumes slider to adjust the density of the volume. Select the data resolution setting to choose between low, medium, or high texture quality. These settings will be applied when you load a new model from the library.Medicalholodeck’s recommended defaults are 10–14% volume quality and medium resolution for headsets, and 50% volume quality with full resolution for PCs. These settings can also be adjusted for each individual model. Look for quality for volumes and data resolution at the bottom of the Medical Imaging XR panel, numbers 6 and 7. Low framerate screen You can monitor your device's frames per second (FPS) in the top-right corner of the object pad. If the frame rate drops below 10 FPS, a low FPS warning screen appears as a protective measure. It gives your device time to recover before becoming unresponsive or overheating. It also signals that rendering quality may need to be lowered or the workspace optimized. This screen isn't just a warning-it’s a safeguard against crashes and a prompt to maintain system stability. When this screen appears, you can:

• Continue if your device can handle it.
• Or remove all data to lighten the load.

Then, check your quality settings to optimize performance. Data resolution In volumetric imaging, resolution controls how sharp and detailed each slice appears. Users can manually select between low, medium, and high texture versions, depending on their performance needs and visual preferences. Volumetric quality The volume quality slider controls how much of the dataset is actively used during rendering:

• 50% Setting: All original slices from the DICOM dataset are used. This provides a faithful representation without interpolation.
• >50% Setting: The system begins to generate additional slices using interpolation algorithms, effectively increasing density beyond the original dataset. This can enhance detail but increases processing demands massively.
• <50% Setting: Fewer slices are used, reducing visual fidelity but improving performance.

Together, these determine how “complete” and realistic the 3D volume appears. A denser dataset with high-resolution textures offers more anatomical detail but requires more GPU and CPU power to render. What is volumetric data? Volumetric data represents 3D anatomical structures by stacking 2D image slices, typically obtained through CT or MRI scans. Each slice captures a thin cross-section of the body at specific intervals. When combined these slices form a full 3D volume. These datasets are usually stored in the DICOM format, which includes both the images and the metadata needed to interpret them properly. From slices to 3D visualization: processing and texturing Visualizing volumetric data in VR involves sophisticated processing techniques. Texture maps are applied to each 2D slice, and algorithms interpolate between them to generate a smooth, continuous 3D representation. The more slices included-and the higher their resolution-the more detailed the final rendering. However, this increased fidelity comes with a computational cost. Processing involves two key factors:

• Slice density: The number of slices in a dataset.
• Texture resolution: The visual clarity of each slice.

Together, these determine how “complete” and realistic the 3D volume appears. A denser dataset with high-resolution textures offers more anatomical detail but requires more GPU and CPU power to render. Challenges with large datasets in VR Unlike conventional 2D image viewing, real-time 3D rendering in VR must maintain high frame rates (ideally 60 FPS on a PC, 30 on a standalone headset) to prevent motion sickness and ensure a smooth experience. Large volumetric datasets, while visually impressive, can overwhelm hardware if not managed properly. The larger the dataset - in physical dimensions, not just file size - the more processing power is required to render it effectively. This is where smart optimization and quality settings become essential. Adaptive detail rendering To balance performance with visual quality, VR systems use level of detail (LOD) techniques that adjust rendering based on the user’s distance from the dataset. When the user is close, the system displays high detail; when farther away, it switches to lower-resolution textures, since fine details aren’t noticeable at a distance. This approach preserves meaningful content while optimizing performance.