Difference Between
MRI & X Ray for Back Pain
Having chronic back pain can be a debilitating experience. Diagnosing and treating its cause can alleviate some, if not all, of that pain. Most doctors use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or X-rays during diagnosis. While it's the doctor's preference which she wants to use, some differences exist between the two tools.
X-ray for Back Pain
Two types of X-rays are used on the back: discography and myelogram. A discography requires injections into the discs and is used if the source of pain is believed to be a disc. A myelogram requires a spinal injection and is used when the patient has back pain when moving and standing.
MRI for Back Pain
An MRI is not usually the first choice for diagnosing back pain problems when they appear. As a result, an MRI exam may not be covered by insurance.
When to Use X-ray
When back pain is thought to be due to disease, an X-ray is preferred. It can illustrate the progression of degenerative conditions such as arthritis.
When to Use MRI
Some factors may lead a doctor to choose an MRI to find the cause of back pain. They include the patient being more than 50 years old, having congenital spine problems, signs of fracture or tumor, spine arthritis, a previous spinal injury or surgery, steroid or drug abuse, a shooting pain down a leg and the condition not improving after four weeks of at-home treatment.
Picture Quality
MRIs have the ability to take 3-D images of the back and other parts of the body, and they provide a more precise picture of the soft tissue surrounding the vertebrae than X-rays. X-rays do a good job showing the alignment of the spine and vertebrae as a whole.
Comfort
The MRI machine is similar to a tube. The patient lays on a table that slides into the tube, and the MRI machine then rotates around the table. This setup can cause problems for claustrophobic patients and people who get headaches from the machine's loud noise. To have an X-ray taken, the patient lays on a table or stands, and the X-ray machine is positioned around him. A X-ray taken while the patient stands may be more comfortable for someone with serious back pain.
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