Advances in the prenatal investigation of the fetus using MRI

Abstract

Fetal MRI represents a modern tool that can help us better diagnose and evaluate at-risk pregnancies. It comes as an adjuvant to the widespread ultrasound examination, pro­­ving its importance in a large number of pathologies. As already known, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is an imaging technique that does not use ionizing radiation. This is the most important feature when talking about ma­ter­nal and fetal imaging. Beside this, it also has a few other ad­van­tages: wide field of view, excellent tissue contrast, it is not limited by maternal body fat, osseous structures or fetal presentation. The ability to make multiplanar acqui­si­tions has also proven to be a powerful tool that is not always available with ultrasound. Although there are no contraindications regarding the safety of the mother or fetus, it is recommended that the investigation should not be performed earlier than the second trimester. It is also important to mention that the examination does not provide useful information if it is made too early. In con­clu­sion, as MRI technology is becoming more and more ac­ces­sible, we expect that fetal imaging will become more wide­spread in complicated cases. The new advancements will surely prove to be a useful tool in managing at-risk preg­nan­cies.