Costs of a MRT examination | MRT – Examination of the abdominal organs

Costs of a MRT examination

MRI is one of the most expensive diagnostic procedures in medicine. The reasons are, on the one hand, the high development costs of the device, the high purchase prices as well as the high maintenance and servicing costs that are regularly incurred. In addition, the length of an MRI examination means that not as many patients can be examined per day and therefore the device is less profitable.

The costs of an MRI examination vary greatly depending on the body region being examined. The examination of the shoulder and the neck area cause the highest costs. These costs amount to about 600 EUR and can even increase when using contrast medium.

For the examination of the liver or the kidneys, the costs are between 350 and 450 EUR. Here too, the additional administration of contrast medium can cause the costs to skyrocket. When examining the entire large or small intestine, costs of about 500-700 EUR are incurred, depending on the length and section of the examination.

The costs for an MRI examination are usually covered by the statutory health insurance. There are some limit decisions where an application for reimbursement must first be made. Of course, the indication, which is made by a doctor, is also important. At times, the use of a more or less whole-body MRI as a preventive examination has also been discussed. Due to the massive costs involved, this idea was quickly rejected.

Indication

As a rule, an ultrasound examination of the abdomen is performed after the physical examination before the indication for an MRI is given. If, for example, a gallstone has been seen in the ultrasound and it should be clarified whether there are other stones in the further course of the bile duct system, an MRI examination of the abdomen is also recommended. Even if conspicuous structures were found on the liver that could not be correctly assigned, an MRI is indicated.

Here there is the possibility of an additional MRI of the liver. For some years now, it has also been possible to perform a virtual colonoscopy using an MRI instead of a colonoscopy. The images of the intestine are taken in such a way that the intestinal wall and structures as well as possible polyps or changes, as in a colonoscopy, can be identified. However, colonoscopy is still much more accurate and represents the standard for colonoscopy.