BASICS OF MRI FOR HEAD AND NECK SURGEONS

Abstract

With a multislice CT, images of any tomographic plane, such as the coronal or sagittal plane, can be reconstructed easily on CT. So, it is very important to understand the characteristics of CT and MRI for selecting favorable imaging modalities and examination protocols for presumed pathological conditions. This paper discusses utility and important matters of MRI in the evaluation of head and neck tumors, and emphasizes the following points : 1) characteristic signal intensity, 2) limitation of the scan area, 3) motion artifact, 4) spatial resolution, 5) susceptibility artifact, 6) signal intensity of vessels and MRA, 7) signal intensity of fat and fat suppression technique, 8) evaluation of bone marrow and cartilage, and 9) perineural spread.