For people throughout Pennsylvania who are injured while exercising a M.R.I. scan seems like the logical way to diagnose an injury and determine if surgery is warranted. There are some in the sports medicine field however who do not agree.

Some in the field believe that the use of M.R.I. scans is routinely leading to patient misdiagnosis when an exam, taking a history and an X-ray could provide a more accurate diagnosis. The concern many voice is that a scan that is misinterpreted could lead to a misdiagnosis the treatment for which could be harmful to the patient.

One well known sports medicine orthopedist who thinks the scans could be misleading has conducted a test to determine how effective the scans actually are. He provided scans on the shoulders of 31 professional baseball pitchers. None of the pitchers complained of pain or had sustained an injury. The scan showed abnormal shoulder cartilage in 90 percent of the players. In addition, 87 percent of the scans revealed rotator cuffs with abnormal tendons. In many instances, after an injury, scans showing such results would lead to surgery to address the abnormalities.

The question then is why doctors order the scans if in many situations a more accurate diagnosis can be made without it? Ironically, one of the reasons is that doctors are scared of medical malpractice lawsuits. Some fear that they will miss a diagnosis if they do not perform a scan.

Another reason also speaks to the financial side of practicing medicine. It is apparently not uncommon for doctors to purchase a M.R.I. machine for their practice. In these instances the doctor can recover two fees, one for performing the scan as well as one for reading it.

Despite the many instances in sports medicine when a M.R.I. may be excessive, most agree that there are many instances in the practice of medicine where the use of a M.R.I. is invaluable.

Source: The New York Times, "Sports Medicine Said to Overuse M.R.I.'s," Gina Kolata, Oct. 28, 2011