Advantages of head MRI

• MRI does not use ionizing radiation, and is thus preferred over CT in children and patients requiring multiple imaging examinations
• MRI has a much greater range of available soft tissue contrast, depicts anatomy in greater detail, and is more sensitive and specific for abnormalities within the brain itself
• MRI scanning can be performed in any imaging plane without having to physically move the patient
• MRI contrast agents have a considerably smaller risk of causing potentially lethal allergic reaction
• MRI allows the evaluation of structures that may be obscured by artifacts from bone in CT images