| Body Part | MRI Preferred | CT Preferred |
|---|---|---|
| Brain | Arteriovenous malformation and aneurysm Congenital anomalies Extra axial trauma with negative CT Infarction Inflammatory disease Otitis – middle and inner ear Primary and metastatic neoplasia Sella and pituitary disease Vasculitis | Complex Fracture |
| Orbits | Cortical blindness or optic pathway disease Optic neuritis Retrobulbar neoplasms or masses Retinal hemorrhage or subretinal effusion Sudden blindness Vascular abnormalities | Orbital trauma with fracture Retrobulbar neoplasms or masses |
| Head & Neck | Thyroid masses – differentiated and/or hyperfunctional (in conjunction with thyroid scintigraphy) | Nasal Neoplasia Neck masses or adenopathy Salivary gland masses Oropharynx and Nasopharynx Bony head and neck trauma Dental associated masses Skull base neoplasia Thyroid masses (nonfunctional or poorly differentiated) |
| Spine | Congenital anomalies Discospondylitis Intervertebral disc disease Myelitis Primary/secondary spinal cord neoplasia Paraspinal/vertebral neoplasia Post operative recurrence of intervertebral disc disease Spinal Stenosis Syringomyelia | Bony spinal trauma (vertebral fracture) |
| Orthopedics | Avascular necrosis (i.e. Legg-Calve-Perthes disease) Joint effusion Lymphoma and Multiple Myeloma Meniscal, tendon or ligamentous injury Osteomyelitis and septic arthritis Primary bone tumors (in conjunction with bone scintigraphy) Soft Tissue Sarcomas | Complex Fracture Prosthesis planning Neoplasia requiring imaging guidance for biopsy. |
| Abdomen | Adrenal masses Hepatic masses Pancreatic masses Renal masses (in conjunction with renal scintigraphy) Splenic masses Ectopic ureter evaluation Portosystemic shunt (following positive scintigraphic study) Renal/ureteral calculus evaluation |
|
| Thorax | Primary or metastatic lung carcinoma Pleural disease Pneumothorax Pneumonia, abscess and empyema Metastasis screening |
|
| Pelvis | Anal gland adenocarcinoma Bladder carcinoma Soft tissue sarcoma Primary bone tumor Prostate carcinoma Uterine neoplasia Trauma (complex fractures) |
|
| Cardiovascular | Cardiac and pericardial masses | |
| Vascular | Intracranial aneurysm, arteriovenous malformation | Pulmonary embolism Evaluation of thrombosis including aortic, caval, and portal vein. |
