MRI

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a painless and non-invasive imaging tool.  First used in human medicine in the 1980s, MRI imaging relies on a strong magnet to create detailed medical images.  The MRI’s magnetic field is thousands of times more powerful than the earth’s own magnetic field, and briefly aligns the “spin” of atoms in the area being imaged.  A computer then converts the resulting radiofrequency energy into detailed three-dimensional images of the tissues in the patient’s body.

Since about 2010, MRI has been increasing used in equine veterinary medicine, revolutionizing veterinarians’ ability to diagnose and treat problems that cannot be evaluated with conventional tools like radiographs or ultrasound.  This tool is primarily used to diagnose orthopedic issues in the lower limb.  Without MRI, it is difficult or impossible to see many critical structures, especially soft tissues like tendons, ligaments, and cartilage in a horse’s foot.   As it turns-out, these structures are among the most frequent contributors to chronic discomfort and associated performance issues.   In particular, MRI is usually strongly indicated for horses with chronic discomfort localized to the foot or other area in the lower limbs where ultrasound and radiographs are inconclusive

That means that MRI can play a critical role in helping us diagnose and treat specific issues that might otherwise be reliant upon an educated guess or a “shot-in-the-dark”, or otherwise untreatable.  With the addition of this modality in the Summer of 2023, Montana Equine is proud to be playing a leading role in helping to advance the science of equine imaging in our region.