Other Investigations of the Intestine and Pancreas: Diagnostic Imaging

A variety of inflammatory and neoplastic diseases of the gastrointestinal tract can be accurately evaluated with cross sectional imaging studies. While CT has played a pivotal role in depicting these diseases, recent advances in MRI, such as faster T2 and T1 weighted sequences and superior fat suppression techniques, have allowed for detailed visualization of the bowel and pancreas. The lack of radiation exposure is especially pertinent due to concerns regarding cancer induction risks, particularly in children and young adults. In this chapter we will highlight the imaging modality of choice for various diseases of the bowel and pancreas and discuss MR applications and findings in more detail. Small bowel follow through and small bowel enteroclysis will be mentioned briefly as their use has become increasingly uncommon and largely replaced with newer small bowel imaging techniques including capsule endoscopy, double balloon enteroscopy and MRI.