Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)

MRI exams can be scheduled: Monday-Friday from 7:30 a.m.-8:30 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.. To schedule an appointment, call 815-942-4105.

What is Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)?

MRI is a type of imaging technique that provides valuable information to your physician.  Most people are familiar with the use of x-rays to obtain images, but MRI is different:  It uses no x-rays, but rather your body’s natural magnetic field to produce images.  Special equipment including a computer, a large, powerful magnet and radio waves piece together information about the body’s tissues and structures based on the natural magnetic fields emitted by the body.  MRI may be used in addition to or along with x-rays or CAT scanning to help diagnose and treat your symptoms.

What MRI System is Used at Morris Hospital?

In 2011, Morris Hospital upgraded its MRI system to the 1.5T Vantage Titan.  Along with superior image quality, here are some other enhanced features of Morris Hospital’s $1.3 million MRI system:

The bore opening is 18 percent larger than other 1.5T systems. In fact, it offers up to 100% more clearance from nose to magnet than systems that label themselves as “open” MRIs. The more spacious environment is particularly important for claustrophobic patients.

70 percent of studies can be performed feet first, with the patient’s head comfortably lying outside of the bore.

MRI exams can be noisy. Morris Hospital’s new MRI reduces noise levels by 90 percent through Pianissimo technology. This enables patients to relax more easily, which is important because patients have to remain motionless during MRI exams.

The table on the new system can support patients up to 450 lbs. It also features built-in arm rests to improve patient comfort and it lowers to less than 17 inches from the ground, offering easier access for children and seniors.

Exam time is generally reduced to about 30 minutes on average, compared to 45 minutes with Morris Hospital’s previous system.

As a result of the superior image quality, Morris Hospital now offers advanced MR angiography studies of the vascular system, many which can be performed without using contrast agents.

What is Magnetic Resonance Angiography (MRA)?

Who would ever have thought that physicians would be able to clearly visualize a patient’s arteries from head to toe, without the patient ever receiving an incision, a poke from an IV, an injection of contrast, or medication to help them relax? That’s exactly what’s happening at Morris Hospital since the addition of the 1.5T Vantage Titan MRI. Physicians can see how blood is flowing through the vessels in the neck, legs, arms, feet, hands, head and abdomen with greater clarity than ever. At Morris Hospital, MRA studies can be done to check for blockages in the carotid artery that supply blood to the brain; brain aneurysm; bulges or aneurysms in the aorta, abdomen or other arteries; narrowing in the arteries of the legs, arms, feet or hands; disease in the arteries leading to the kidneys.

What is Breast MRI?

Breast MRI uses radio waves and magnetic fields instead of x-rays to produce very detailed, cross-sectional images of the breast. While it doesn’t replace mammography, the American Cancer Society does recommend screening with MRI and mammography for most high risk women beginning at age 30. In addition, breast MRI is often used to screen young women with very dense breasts, women or men who test positive for BRCA1 or BRCA2 (breast cancer susceptibility genes), as well as women with palpable lumps that can’t be detected on a mammogram or ultrasound. For women who are diagnosed with cancer, breast MRI may be used to assist the doctor in treatment planning or to check the opposite breast for tumors.An injection of contrast is necessary for most breast MRI scans. If a breast MRI detects an area of concern, a patient may undergo an MRI-guided breast biopsy.