CT vs MRI Scan
Modern medicine has advanced well beyond x-rays. The two most commonly used tests besides x-rays are CT scans and MRIs, both of which provide more detail than simple x-rays. If you need specialized imaging, it can be helpful to understand the operation and uses for a CT Scan vs. MRI. In some ways these two tests are similar to one another. They both show cross-sectional pictures of the body, but they accomplish this with different techniques. CT (computerized tomography) uses multiple x-rays, taken at different angles, to produce the cross-sectional imaging. MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) uses magnetic fields and radio frequencies. Because of the differences in techniques, the tests show the same parts of the body in different ways and are selected based upon the possible diagnosis. A CT scan is a combination of a series of X-ray images taken at different angles; the CT uses a computer to create images from these X-rays. An MRI is a scan that uses magnetic fields an...