Dr told me to do a mri test for epilepsy?!

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I suffered with epilepsy 10 years ago when I was about 18-20, I had a lot of stress and passed out one night I subsequently had 3 grand-mal fits after that and was referred to a specialist.
MRI is ok but you also need an EEG (Electroencephalography) which measures areas of activity in the brain. Lots of little stickers are put of your head and you are asked to watch various strobes of light and listen to different noises and your brain is monitored for reactions.
I would say just from experience that to get a full picture you need EEG, MRI and CT (Cat scan) to check everything simultaneously.
Additionally I too had to deal with useless doctors along the way. After I was put on my med which were 1000mg or lamictal (a standard epiliepsy med) I got severe hedaches and blackouts and dizziness, I complained to him and without a care told me these were side effects and normal. I then (obviously this isn't a good idea for everyone) reduced my dose gradually and found all the symptoms went at 600mg and no seizures still. Sometimes these professionals are a little too much on their high horse and dont listen. If something isnt right and you feel it then act, double check and question everything or get a second opinion.
Good luck with everything.

Prev epilepsy sufferer

Get another doctor, this one is on "Commission" !

I got stung for 18 months as well and I got nowhere, 2 visits to another doctor sorted me out...

I am sure there must be a way to report such doctors, not sure how to though ;-(

Sounds like the Dr is getting a kick back of fees from the suggested clinic. An MRI will show up any problem but the Dr must be able to "read" the resulting images.

he is right.

People with epilepsy will often have abnormal electrical activity seen on an electroencephalograph (EEG). (An EEG is a reading of the electrical activity in the brain.) In some cases, the test may show the location in the brain where the seizures start. EEGs can often be normal after a seizure or between seizures, so it may be necessary to perform a longer test.
Various blood tests and other tests looking for temporary and reversible causes of seizures, may include:
* Blood chemistry
* Blood sugar
* CBC (complete blood count)
* CSF (cerebrospinal fluid) analysis
* Kidney function tests
* Liver function tests
* Tests for infectious diseases
Tests for the cause and location of the problem may include:
* EEG
* Head CT or MRI scan
* Lumbar puncture (spinal tap)
One of the most important ways of diagnosing epilepsy is through the use of brain scans. The most commonly used brain scans include CT (computed tomography), PET (positron emission tomography) and MRI (magnetic resonance imaging). CT and MRI scans reveal the structure of the brain, which can be useful for identifying brain tumors, cysts, and other structural abnormalities. PET and an adapted kind of MRI called functional MRI (fMRI) can be used to monitor the brain's activity and detect abnormalities in how it works. SPECT (single photon emission computed tomography) is a relatively new kind of brain scan that is sometimes used to locate seizure foci in the brain.
Consult a neurologist.

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/…
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epilepsy
http://www.medicinenet.com/seizure/artic…
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/epileps…
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/frontal…
http://www.merckmanuals.com/professional…