MRI for Pediatric Acute Appendicitis

History: 14 year old female with right lower qaudrant pain

Axial T2-Weighted MRI demonstrates a mildly thickened appendix in the right lower quadrant (white arrow).

Axial FIESTA MR demonstrates a mildly thickened appendix in the right lower quadrant (white arrow)

Axial post-contrast LAVA-Flex MRI demonstrates abnormal enhancement of the wall of the appendix (white arrow)

This is the appearance of pediatric appendicitis on MRI. Intravenous gadolinium contrast aids in visualization of the appendix (as seen in the third image above, the LAVA-Flex sequence MRI). MRI has recently been a hot topic of research in the diagnosis of pediatric appendicitis in an effort to reduce radiation to kids, in concordance with ALARA principles.

See appendicitis on ultrasound.