Differences between the 3T vs 1.5T?

Consider if imaging the abdomen, pelvis and spinal cord is important when booking your whole body scan.

A casual study of MRI literature shows that 3T imaging does not increase image quality in the body [1]. In fact 3T imaging of the abdomen and pelvis is “inferior owing to problems with dielectric effects” [1]. These effects lead to information loss rendering the scan undiagnostic.  At 3T anatomy is misrepresented at “air, bone or soft-tissue interfaces” far more than at 1.5T [2]. Image quality of the spinal cord is reduced with 3T and “raises important safety concerns” [2]. One of these concerns is “significant cardiovascular stress” [3].

3T imaging presents health risks which are not a concern at 1.5T.

Using a 3T scanner requires heating the body tissue 4 times more than a clinically accepted 1.5T scanner. This presents an increased risk particularly for children, elderly, and anyone who has an impaired ability to dissipate heat. This is particularly concerning when imaging the abdominal and pelvic organs [1], a major component of whole body imaging.

As stated by [1] “some major problems at higher field strength (3T) have to be solved before high field magnetic resonance systems can really replace the well established and technically developed magnetic resonance systems operating at 1.5T.”