3 Reasons Your Doctor Ordered An MRI
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is one of several imaging tests used to diagnose a wide range of conditions. Since an MRI can be somewhat expensive and time-consuming, it is often reserved for instances when an x-ray or CT is not sensitive enough.
Brain Abnormalities
An MRI is rarely ordered as the first imaging test for the diagnosis of brain abnormalities. If you have symptoms consistent with stroke, brain tumors, or demyelinating diseases, your doctor will want an MRI if a prior CT scan showed a problem or the results were inconclusive. An MRI can do a better job at illuminating concerning areas or concerns, such as infection, necrosis, or cancer because MRI is more sensitive than CT. Some people may experience symptoms associated with stroke, but have no discernible damage on their CT results. This can happen because it may take days for small areas of damage to show up on CT or the area of damage is simply too small to be noticed with CT, making MRI a better option.
Angiography And Venography
When MRI is used to identify artery or vein abnormalities, a contrast agent is used. This material is injected into a blood vessel and promptly begins to make blood vessels more visible on MRI. As the contrast agent moves through the blood vessels, there may be areas of narrowing in the blood vessel or a clump of abnormal blood vessels. Some of the most critical arterial concerns are narrowing, aneurysms, or dissections associated with main blood vessels in the neck, chest, and abdomen, since problems in these areas can quickly become life-threatening. Problems concerning the veins, such as venous insufficiency, are another problem that might be identified with MRI.
Brain Mapping
When people have brain tumors or frequent seizures that are difficult to control, it may be necessary to have surgery. A major concern about surgery is the possibility of causing serious damage to the brain during the procedure. To help surgeons plan the surgery they may order a functional MRI. An fMRI identifies which areas of the brain are more active when performing certain tasks. Before the procedure, you are given a contrast agent and the doctor will ask you specific questions or to do certain activities. The activities your doctor wants you to do will depend on the area of the brain that will be affected by surgery and the functions associated with those regions of the brain. This information gives surgeons a map of what areas of the brain should be avoided during surgery.
MRI is one of the more sophisticated forms of diagnostic imaging, making it useful to identify problems in many organ systems. When doctors order an MRI scan, it is typically because they need more information than what they can gain from less expensive and easier imaging options.
