Finding the right tests…
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Emergency services available 24 x 7
Finding the right tests…
MRI
MRI 4VESSELS ANGIO images the four main arteries that carry blood to your brain: the two internal carotid arteries in your neck and the two vertebral arteries running up along your spine. Together these vessels supply nearly all the brain's blood, the carotids feeding the front and the vertebrals feeding the back, so scanning all four in one visit gives a complete picture of blood supply from both directions. It's ordered when a stroke, a narrowing severe enough to raise stroke risk, or an aneurysm is suspected in these specific vessels. As an MRI study, it uses a magnet and radio waves rather than X-rays and doesn't need a catheter placed inside an artery, unlike traditional catheter angiography.
This scan checks the internal carotid and vertebral arteries for narrowing, blockage, or an aneurysm, and looks at how blood is reaching the brain from both the front and back. Because stroke risk often depends on more than one vessel, your doctor reads all four together rather than any single artery alone.
Your brain gets its entire blood supply from four vessels: two internal carotid arteries running up the front of your neck, and two vertebral arteries running up near your spine. The carotids mainly feed the front two-thirds of the brain, while the vertebral arteries join to form the basilar artery and feed the brainstem and back of the brain.
A narrowing or blockage in any one of these vessels can raise stroke risk, and problems in the vertebral arteries are harder to pick up with a simple ultrasound than problems in the carotids. Imaging all four together in one MRA lets your doctor compare both sides and both circulation systems in a single study, rather than checking one vessel and hoping the others are fine.
Radiologists reading this study look for narrowing from plaque buildup, a blockage, or a bulge in the vessel wall called an aneurysm. Finding narrowing here matters because vertebral artery narrowing specifically carries a meaningfully higher risk of a repeat stroke, which is one reason it's checked alongside the carotids rather than skipped.
This scan does not replace a full stroke work-up. Your doctor combines it with your symptoms, risk factors, and often other tests to decide what, if anything, needs treatment.
It images the two internal carotid arteries in your neck and the two vertebral arteries that run up near your spine. Together these four vessels supply nearly all the blood your brain receives.
Narrowing or a blockage in any of these four vessels can raise the risk of a stroke, and the vertebral arteries in particular are linked to a higher chance of a repeat stroke when narrowed. Imaging all four together gives your doctor a fuller picture than checking just one.
Yes. Ultrasound mainly looks at the carotid arteries and can struggle to assess the vertebral arteries well, while this MRI images all four vessels together in more detail, including areas near the base of the skull that ultrasound doesn't reach easily.
This page is general information about the test, not medical advice. Your own report's reference ranges apply — please discuss your results with your doctor.
It depends on your doctor's request and the technique used. Some vertebral and carotid imaging can be done without any injected dye, while other situations call for gadolinium to sharpen the picture.
No, the scan itself is painless. You'll need to lie still inside the scanner, and the machine is loud, so earplugs or headphones are usually offered.
Yes, this scan can pick up a bulge in the vessel wall, called an aneurysm, in any of the four vessels it covers. Your doctor will explain what any specific finding means for you.
MRI ANGIO is a general entry that follows whatever vessels your doctor specifies, while this scan always covers the same four named arteries feeding the brain. It's ordered specifically for stroke-related concerns in these vessels.