Has anyone had a hip MRI? My doctor has said I might need one to look for a possible labrum tear. I am wondering about contrast dye. From what I have read (and experienced) alot of doctors order contrast as a standard procedure even when it is not necessary, and that contrast is really only needed for things like a brain MRI and not a MRI of a joint. When I had a wrist MRI a few years ago I had a younger doctor order a MRI of the wrist with contrast, and I later learned that the contrast was not necessary. I had a MRI of the knee in june and they ordered it without contrast. Is contrast needed for a hip MRI? I have also read about MRI arthrogram, where they inject contrast into the hip joint instead of into your vein on your arm like with normal contrast, how necessary is this for looking for looking for a labrum tear?
I’ve probably had a half dozen MRIs…mostly knees. Only one was done with contrast. That was for a shoulder. The doctor was concerned there might be a very small tear that wouldn’t show up normally, so he ordered contrast. They basically injected saline into the shoulder joint to flood the area. If there was a tear of some sort, the saline would find the gap and be visible.
I don’t think the relevant question is if it’s needed for a hip MRI…the question is if it is needed for your particular diagnosis.
I had a shoulder labrum tear diagnosed via MRI w/o contrast, but they are typically done with dye. Also, the dye should be injected directly into the joint. Cartilage doesn’t have a lot of blood so I don’t think a tear would show up if you get the contrast via IV.
Is there a reason you don’t want contrast? Do you have an issue with needles? Are you worried about an arthrogram?
I had an MRI before it was cool. It was an artisanal MRI, but you wouldn’t have heard of that.
Sorry. I’ll go now.
Did you have any dye injected in the vein in your arm? And what tesla strength was your MRI, the standard 1.5 tesla or the newer and stronger 3 tesla? I have read that with the 3 tesla machines they can see labrum tears without dye. Anyone know how true that is?
Did you have any problems after they injected the saline into your shoulder like increased pain or stiffness? Did you end up getting surgery on your shoulder?
bump
My shoulder was a little heavy for a few hours. Interesting sensation. Not enough to stop me from being able to drive or anything like that.
No surgery - there were no tears found. I did some physical therapy, and improved a lot.
Some people have bad reactions to the dye. I’d avoid it unless I expected it to provide a benefit. I have no clue whether it would be helpful in this (or any other) case.