Our MRI Center | Legacy Brain & Spine in Marietta, GA

Welcome to our MRI Center

We offer flexible scheduling, accept most major insurance plans, and place our patients at the center of everything we do.

CONDITIONS

Our MRI equipment helps diagnose a wide range of brain and spine conditions

MRI SCANS

Excellence in diagnostic imaging, with a comfortable environment.

PREPERATIONS

Learn how to prepare for your MRI appointment at our center.

Why MRI?

There is a wide range of brain and spine disorders that require diagnostic imaging in order to be properly evaluated. A magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine is a piece of diagnostic medical equipment that takes high-quality images of your brain and spinal column of your body through the use of radio waves, a magnetic field, and a computer platform. It visualizes those images in “slices” so that doctors can get a multidimensional view of your back, neck, or brain in order to make a precise diagnosis and determine an optimal minimally invasive surgical approach.

In addition, through the use of a contrast agent such as gadolinium, which is generally harmless in the small doses in which it is used, an MRI scan displays with great clarity blood vessels, blood flow, and the contrast between adjacent tissues and organs in your body. This allows your treating physician to get a complete picture of what´s causing your back or neck pain, as well as of any underlying anatomical or health issues that may have to be considered. If you are someone with kidney problems or other risk factors that may be aggravated by the use of contrast dyes, an MRI without gadolinium can be used.

The MRI procedure itself is painless, without side effects, and almost “uneventful.” Patients are placed in a horizontal position in a open MRI scanner and do not feel any physical sensation apart from the noise that the machine makes due to the process of inquiring images.

Had enough of medical terminology? We provide you with this information because we want you to be well informed before you come to our office and understand why we may “put you through” certain procedures. But we also do it because we want to show you an alternative, more advanced and accommodating approach to traditional MRI.

There is a wide range of brain and spine disorders that require diagnostic imaging in order to be properly evaluated. A magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine is a piece of diagnostic medical equipment that takes high-quality images of tendons, ligaments, and soft tissues in your body through the use of radio waves, a magnetic field, and a computer platform. It visualizes those images in “slices” so that doctors can get a multidimensional view of your back, neck, or brain in order to make a precise diagnosis and determine an optimal minimally invasive surgical approach.

The MRI procedure itself is painless, without side effects, and almost “uneventful.” Patients are placed in a horizontal position in a tube-like MRI scanner and do not feel any physical sensation apart from the noise that the machine makes due to pulses of electricity needed to produce shifts in the magnetic field.

Are you experiencing back pain when standing?
Does it get worse when you are walking or active?

Feel the difference in our upright MRI and digital X-ray Center

Most MRI machines are enclosed and require you to lay horizontally in a narrow tube. This means they cannot capture and show the impact that the strain of gravity has on your joints, which may prevent doctors from assessing the severity of your condition.

Our state-of-the-art MRI unit features an upright MRI machine, which enables our medical staff to place you in almost any position and angle to obtain the best images and see what your joints look like when you are standing. A horizontal scan will be taken for comparison, but it will not be the only one they rely on.

Even better? The upright MRI machine is open to keep you comfortable and stress-free.

In 40 minutes, you could know why your back hurts.

The revolutionary design of the scanner enables patients to simply walk in and be scanned. The upright MRI allows all parts of the body, particularly the spine and joints, to be seen in a weight-bearing state, and is equipped with a unique automatic positioning system that moves the patient into the magnet and places the anatomy of interest into the center of the magnetic field. It also can rotate the standing patient into a horizontal position or anywhere in between (astronaut training, anyone?), so they can be scanned lying down as in conventional MRI scanning.

Because the patient is typically upright (either standing or sitting in a special chair) or placed at a 30-degree angle, with an unrestricted view in front of them, problems with claustrophobia are effectively eliminated. The upright MRI scanner is also the best and most comfortable option for patients who are not able to tolerate conventional ‘open’ MRI scanners due to other health-related reasons.