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Cat Scans (CT)
- rules out small cerebral bleeds or to check for tumors
- Ultrasonography of the vessels leading into the brain, or arteriography is commonly used to check ford any blockages
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Advantages of CT are
- cheaper than most scans
- is very reliable and accurate for CVA type problems
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Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)
technique that allows a high contrast static picture of the soft tissue, by mapping the element hydrogen's presence using a very large magnetic field
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MRI yields
- superb detail of deep structures of the brain and body
- detectin tumors, MS and degenerative diseases
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Disadvantages of an MRI include
- magnetic field that can suck out any metal pieces like losse tooth filings, pacemakers, or small sharpnel out of tissues
- very expensive
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Positron Emission Tomography (PET)
- test which combines the CT w/ radioscopic imagine.
- can probe not only structure by function of the brain
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Most appropriate usage of PET
in Alzheimer's, mental illness, CVA, and epilepsy
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Disadvantages of PET
- cost of running the machine
- relatively poor resolution (4-8mm), and its short-acting isotopes
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