Function

• Magnetic resonance imaging is a test that makes pictures of organs and structures in the body with the use of magnetic field impulses, radio frequency pulses and a computer.
  
  

Why Use an MRI ?

• An MRI can give different information about structures in the body as well as being able to show problems that cannot be seen with other imaging methods like x-ray, ultrasound or computed tomography (CT) scan.
  
  

What Is MRI of the Prostate ?

• An MRI can detect a tumor at the top of the prostate, which a biopsy and other methods of detection fail to do.
  
  

Benefits

• MRI is noninvasive and does not involve exposure to x-ray materials. It can image soft-structure tissues and pelvic structures with clearer pictures, and can detect and image a broad range of conditions like prostate cancer. MRI can examine the chemical makeup of the prostate and detect abnormalities.
  
  

Risks

• There can be a very slight risk of a mild allergic reaction if contrast material is injected. On occasion, nephrogenic systemic fibrosis, a complication caused by high doses of the MRI contrast material in patients who have poor kidney function, can occur.