What is the difference between a CAT scan and a MRI?!


Question: What is the difference between a CAT scan and a MRI!?
Answers:
Cat scans are a specialized type of x-ray!. The patient lies down on a couch which slides into a large circular opening!. The x-ray tube rotates around the patient and a computer collects the results!. These results are translated into images that look like a "slice" of the person!.

CT is very good for imaging bone structures!. In fact, it's usually the imaging mode of choice when looking at the inner ears!. It can easily detect tumors within the auditory canals and can demonstrate the entire cochlea on most patients!.

MRI is different!. Unlike CAT it uses magnets and radio waves to create the images!. No x-rays are used in an MRI scanner!. The patient lies on a couch that looks very similar the ones used for CAT!. They are placed in a very long cylinder and asked to remain perfectly still!. The machine will produce a lot of noise and examinations typically run about 30 minutes!.

These images look similar to a CAT scan but they have much higher detail in the soft tissues!. One of the great advantages of MRI is the ability to change the contrast of the images!. Different contrast settings will highlight different types of tissue!.


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A CAT scan uses x-rays while an MRI uses isotopes and a strong magnetic field!.

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