AMIDE (short for “AMIDE’s a Medical Imaging Data Examiner”) is a free, open-source medical image viewer for viewing, analysing and registering volumetric data sets such as CT, PET and MRI, and it is aimed at researchers, students and anyone who needs to measure regions in 3D or overlay two scans. If you searched for an AMIDE medical image viewer, this is the program: not the chemistry term. In a dental context it is a research and teaching tool for CBCT or CT volumes rather than a clinical viewer.
AMIDE was written by Andreas (Andy) Loening and is licensed under the GPL-2.0. After a long pause, development moved to GitHub, where version 1.0.7 was released on 7 July 2026 and a 1.1.0 pre-release with a GTK 3 port followed a day later. These new releases are source code only; the most recent ready-made Windows installers are for version 1.0.6 (June 2022).
AMIDE at a glance
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Latest version | 1.0.7 (7 July 2026, source release); 1.1.0 pre-release (8 July 2026); last Windows installers 1.0.6 (June 2022) |
| Licence | Free and open source, GPL-2.0 |
| Platforms | Windows (1.0.6 installers), Linux (Debian packages or source); macOS by building from source |
| Developer | Andreas Loening (original author); now maintained on GitHub with community contributors |
| Official website | amide.sourceforge.net (code at github.com/ferdymercury/amide) |
| Best for | Research and teaching: 3D regions of interest, fusion and registration of two volumes, volume rendering |
What it does
- Imports DICOM 3.0 (with extended support through the DCMTK toolkit), Analyze, InterFile 3.3, ECAT 6/7, Acr/Nema 2.0 and raw data files.
- Shows several data sets at once in linked or fused views, using blending or overlay, from any orientation.
- Draws 3D regions of interest (ellipsoids, cylinders, boxes and isocontours) directly on the images and generates statistics for them.
- Aligns data sets with fiducial markers using rigid-body registration.
- True volume rendering, including several data sets at a time, plus fly-through movies and stereoscopic image pairs.
- Line profiles with Gaussian fits and FWHM values, and anisotropic filtering.
How dental teams use it
Compare two CBCT scans of the same patient (research)
- Import both DICOM series, for example a baseline and a follow-up scan.
- Place matching fiducial points on stable anatomy (such as landmarks on the skull base or on untreated teeth) in both data sets.
- Run the fiducial-based rigid registration so the volumes line up.
- Use the fused view with blending to review differences slice by slice.
Measure a region in 3D
- Draw an ellipsoid, box or isocontour region of interest over the structure you are studying.
- Read the statistics AMIDE generates for the region. CBCT grey values are not calibrated Hounsfield units, so treat density numbers as relative.
Teaching with volume rendering
Render a CT or CBCT volume in 3D and record a fly-through movie to show anatomy in lectures. For segmentation to STL models, a tool such as 3DimViewer or MITK is a better fit.
Install and first run
- Windows: the 1.0.6 installers (64-bit and 32-bit) from 2022 are the latest ready-made builds. Newer versions must be compiled, for example with MSYS2, following the project’s build notes.
- Linux: Debian 13 packages AMIDE 1.0.6 and Debian testing/unstable carries 1.1.0; install with your package manager. Other distributions can build from source with autotools, GTK 3 (for 1.1.0) and optional DCMTK, ffmpeg and VolPack libraries.
- macOS: no current ready-made build; the source includes macOS build files for compiling it yourself.
- Gotcha: DICOM import quality depends on whether AMIDE was built with DCMTK. If a CBCT series does not import correctly, check that your build includes DCMTK support, which the project notes is needed for wider clinical DICOM reading.
Limitations
- A research tool, not a clinical viewer; no regulatory clearance and no dental-specific features such as panoramic curves or implant tools.
- The feature list includes no STL export or segmentation-to-model workflow.
- Recent releases are source-only; Windows users are limited to the 2022 installer unless they compile.
- The interface is dated and aimed at imaging scientists rather than clinicians.
AMIDE vs alternatives
For everyday viewing of CBCT and patient CDs, MicroDicom on Windows or OsiriX Lite on macOS are simpler. For segmentation and research pipelines, MITK offers more modern tools, and Voreen focuses on volume rendering. AMIDE stands out for multi-volume fusion, fiducial registration and 3D ROI statistics in a small open-source package.
FAQ
What is AMIDE in medical imaging?
AMIDE stands for “AMIDE’s a Medical Imaging Data Examiner”. It is a free, open-source program for viewing, analysing and registering volumetric medical images.
Is AMIDE free?
Yes. AMIDE is free and open source under the GNU GPL version 2.
Is AMIDE still maintained?
Yes, again. After years with few updates, version 1.0.7 was released on GitHub in July 2026, followed by a 1.1.0 pre-release that moves the interface to GTK 3.
Can AMIDE open DICOM and CBCT files?
Yes. It imports DICOM 3.0, with better support when built with DCMTK, so exported CBCT series can be loaded as volumes.
Does AMIDE run on Windows and Mac?
On Windows, the latest installers are for version 1.0.6 (2022). On macOS there is no current ready-made build, so it must be compiled from source.
AMIDE vs 3DimViewer: which is better for dental CBCT?
3DimViewer is better for threshold segmentation and STL export. AMIDE is better for comparing and registering two scans and for 3D ROI statistics.
Last checked against official sources: 28 September 2026 (developer website: amide.sourceforge.net). Versions and licence terms change — confirm on the developer's site before deploying in a clinic.
