New guidelines recommend MRI in place of CT for diagnosis of stroke

After reviewing the relevant literature, a panel of neurologists, neuroradiologists, and radiologists has concluded that diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) MRI is superior to noncontrast computed tomography (CT) scans, which are the current imaging standard, for diagnosing acute ischemic stroke within 12 hours of symptom onset.

The new guidelines have been set forth by the American Academy of Neurology and appear in the July 13th issue of Neurology.

Lead author Peter Schellinger, M.D., Phd is quoted as saying, "The doctors taking care of acute stroke patients, as well as the patients themselves, need to be aware that MRI-DWI is a superior diagnostic tool in acute stroke less than 12 hours,"