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The Department of Radiology and Imaging offers high definition Magnetic Resonanec Imaging (MRI) scans of the whole body — with particular emphasis in breast imaging, cardiology, neurology, orthopedic, oncology and pediatric services.
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Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Plano's Siemens Magnetom Trio 3 Tesla MRI scanner
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Texas Health Plano uses advanced technology for high performance imaging. The short bore (1.5 and 3.0 high-field magnets) MRI is designed around patient comfort and speed. The entire MRI exam can often be accomplished in 30 to 45 minutes. Please let your technologist know if you are claustrophobic. Conscious sedation for claustrophobic patients may be administered by a medical staff physician.
An MRI, or magnetic resonance imaging scan, uses a powerful magnet and a computer to take pictures of images of organs, the brain, joints, bone and other soft tissues inside your body. MRI allows clinicians to see your body in narrow slices, each about one quarter of an inch thick. The pictures can be taken from the side, from the front or from the bottom as cross-sections. An MRI is safe and effective and does not use ionizing radiation. You may be given an intravenous injection of contrast so that the blood vessels in the body can be seen. This contrast has a low incidence of allergies but please inform the technologist providing your service as soon as you can if you have any.
Detailed MR images allow physicians on the medical staff to better evaluate parts of the body and certain diseases that may not be assessed adequately with other imaging methods such as X-ray, ultrasound or computed tomography.
MRI is an easy, comfortable and painless procedure. It is a noninvasive procedure with no known side effects.
Specific imaging services available to patients include:
Breast Imaging
An MRI of the breast is not a replacement for mammography or ultrasound imaging, but a supplemental tool for detecting and staging breast cancer and other breast abnormalities. Reasons to perform breast MRI include:
- Evaluating abnormalities detected by mammography
- Identifying early breast cancer not detected through other means
- Screening for cancer in women who have implants or scar tissue that might jeopardize an accurate result from a mammogram
- Providing additional information on a diseased breast to assist physicians with treatment decisions
Colon Imaging
Screening examinations of the colon are performed through barium enema or CT colonography. MR colonography may be used to evaluate various conditions of the colon including inflammatory bowel disease.
Pancreatic Imaging
Many diseases of the pancreas result in blockages of the pancreatic duct which can be shown through magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP) methods. MRCP is a non-invasive technique that visualizes the bile ducts, gallbladder and pancreatic ducts without the use of an endoscope or sedation. Reasons to perform MRCP include:
- Evaluating the bile ducts for obstruction such as gallstones
- Identifying pancreatic cysts and lesions and those that need tissue sampling
- If pancreatic tumors are suspected
Overall Benefits
An MRI of the soft-tissue structures of the body has a higher sensitivity to identify and characterize abnormalities and focal lesions than other imaging methods.
An MRI is valuable in diagnosing a broad range of conditions, including cancer, heart and vascular disease, and muscular and bone abnormalities.
An MRI can help physicians evaluate both the structure of an organ and how it is working.
An MRI enables the detection of abnormalities that might be obscured by bone with other imaging methods.
The contrast material used in MRI exams is less likely to produce an allergic reaction than the iodine-based materials used for conventional X-rays and CT scanning.
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