Perhaps every athlete has struggled with sports injury in their life. Therefore, the need for balancing the injury from worsening and to curb the urge of making a quick return to sport becomes crucial. The reason being it acts as a crucial link to establish the nature and intensity of the injury to carve a path to the next steps for management and prognosis. This is the reason why mri radiology is the most trusted method to diagnosis the intensity of any sports injury. Magnetic resonance imaging or MRI has wide acceptance and application in sports injury and guide the need for interventional or surgical management. For any type of musculoskeletal (msk) and sports injury, an mri is advised.
The process of examining sports injury by multiskeletal MRI
If one were to describe mri, it could be defined as an imaging technique performed in a strong magnetic field utilizing radio waves to observe structures in the body. As the imaging method uses high-resolution images, it can give a clear picture of all musculoskeletal structures, such as bones, joints, muscles, tendons, ligaments, and nerves.
Musculoskeletal MRI is often used for diagnosing and getting images of the following:
- It detects any damage to the joints and checks for arthritis conditions. MRI is also effective in the detection of damage in the cartilage, bone, and ligaments (sprains and tears)
- MRI is advised for looking into muscle and tendon damage.
- Injury to the bone and other bone diseases including fracture, stress response, infections and tumor can also be seen in an MRI report
- Any major sprain on the spine and nerve disease
- MRI is used for checking the presence of soft tissue tumors, infections, and cysts
- Hernias
CT vs MRI. Which is them for diagnosing sports injury?
Brain imaging, such as a CT scan may not be needed to diagnose a sports related concussion. In fact, many athletes suffering from concussion do not require any brain imaging. With that being said, if there are signs and symptoms that do suggest more serious injury intracranial bleed, a CT scan shall be prescribed in the first 24 to 48 hours. Apart from minor symptoms, the serious symptoms like seizures, nausea/vomiting, drowsiness, severe headaches and prolonged loss of consciousness should not be avoided as well.
Once 48 hours are up, MRI in mri radiology centers is the more preferred than CT as MRI is more sensitive and receptive than CT in detecting small intracranial bleeds and brain bruises. The biggest advantage of MRI scan over CT scan is that MRIs do not emit X-rays.
In conclusion, it can be said that undiagnosed injury can only add more to the woes of an athlete at the cost of losing the chance to participate in a competition. The recovery time could also be agonizingly long. Thus, one needs to exercise an injury and pain management system which can prevent recurrent injuries.
To get a complete diagnosis of all the sports related injuries, get in touch with Niramaya Pathlabs wherein you get access to best mri facilities along with trained lab technicians.