Hi Bort,

The MRI, regardless of strength, does not always match up to how the patient is feeling. You can feel fine and the MRI will show new/more/active lesions, you can be having a relapse and the MRI will show no changes. Sometimes, for some people, the MRI does match up.

It's always best to treat the patient, not the MRI.

Bort, I was diagnosed with MS and no lesions. When those lesions first showed up, IDK. My first MRI was in 1985 (diagnosed) and I never had another MRI until 2004. The MRI in 2004 showed numerous spinal cord lesions, so I am not a believer in the concept that spinal cord lesions are more difficult to see or that the strenght of the MRI machine can make a difference on what is or is not found.

I know the newer, stronger MRI machines have better resolution and quality but the older machines can still show lesions...if they are there. The early MRIs would pick up abnormalties even without contrast and the reason I needed to go back in for a repeat MRI of the brain. What the first brain MRI showed the second one confirmed there was nothing of concern. One of the first things my neuro was looking for was a brain tumor.