Picture this
MRI scanning is changing the diagnosis of a number of conditions – let’s take a closer look
Photos: Jon Stroud. With thanks to XL Vets Equine partner, Oakhill Equine Vets, for their help with this feature, oakhill-vets.comxlvets-equine.co.uk
Our experts
Charlotte Smith BVSc CertAVP MRCVS is an equine vet at Oakhill Veterinary Centre. Her interests include lameness investigations, imaging and anaesthesia.
Rosie Owen BVSc CertES(Orth) Dip.ECVS MRCVS is a director and equine surgeon at Oakhill Veterinary Centre. She has a particular interest in equine poor performance, surgery and research.
Gone are the days when the only options available to your vet to image internal anatomy were X-rays and ultrasound. Today, veterinary medicine benefits from the amazing technological developments made in the human field, which make diagnosis and therefore treatment of a range of conditions more accurate and effective.
One of the most exciting developments in recent years has been the introduction of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), which uses magnetic field and computer-generated radio waves to create detailed images of specific areas of anatomy.
DID YOU KNOW?
Vets use X-rays to assess bones in the foot but, due to the hard horn capsule surrounding the other internal structures, ultrasound can’t penetrate adequately to provide a clear, good quality image.
How is it different?
MRI is a gold standard imaging tool that allows vets to assess bone, soft tissue, and the interface between the two in one set of scans. No other imaging modality has the ability to do both – radiography (X-ray) is useful to assess bone and ultrasound for soft tissue.