DICOM Attribute

Preliminary Flag (0040,A496)

Keyword
PreliminaryFlag
VR
CS
VM
1

Definition

Indicates whether this SR Document is intended to be regarded as a preliminary or final report. Enumerated Values: PRELIMINARY This report precedes the final report and may contain limited information; it may be time sensitive, and it is not expected to contain all the reportable findings. FINAL This report is the definitive means of communicating the results of a procedure. The definitions of the Enumerated Values are derived from the ACR Practice Guideline for Communication of Diagnostic Imaging Findings, Revised 2005.

From NEMA PS3.3 §C.17.2.

Attribute Metadata

Tag
(0040,A496)
Keyword
PreliminaryFlag
Name
Preliminary Flag
Value Representation (VR)
CS
Value Multiplicity (VM)
1
Status
Active
Source
NEMA PS3.6 (table_6-1)

This attribute is part of the current DICOM Standard. Its value representation is CS with multiplicity 1.

Used in 1 Module

This attribute uses the CS Value Representation. Multiplicity 1 governs how many values may be encoded.

Integration Notes

Real-world integration guidance for engineers implementing this attribute in Mirth Connect, FHIR gateways, HL7 v2 bridges, and cloud DICOM services. Authoritative source data where available; reference examples and operational notes where they add value.

FHIR Mapping

No direct FHIR ImagingStudy mapping published for this attribute. Some tags map indirectly via the Patient, Endpoint, or ImagingSelection resources — Phase 2b will expand coverage to those.

HL7 v2 Equivalent

No standard HL7 v2 equivalent published for this attribute. Imaging-only attributes (Image Pixel data, technical acquisition parameters, modality-specific values) typically have no HL7 v2 carrier.

Cloud DICOM Support

AWS HealthImaging, Azure DICOM, and GCP Healthcare DICOM coverage rolls out by attribute. The QIDO-RS matching keys + Patient/Study/Series core (~50 attributes) are documented; lower-traffic attributes will be added as Saga teams encounter them in production.

Real-World Sample Values

No representative sample value available — this attribute isn't present in the de-identified pydicom fixture set. Add a fixture covering this attribute to expand coverage.

Mirth Connect Example

JavaScript transformer snippets for the most-queried tags will be added as coverage expands.

Common Operational Errors

Operational error patterns for the most-queried tags will be added as coverage expands.

DICOM Integration Services

Saga IT builds production DICOM integrations across Mirth Connect, FHIR gateways, and cloud imaging platforms. If you're working with PreliminaryFlag or the broader (0040,A496) context: