Role of magnetic resonance imaging in blunt renal parenchymal trauma.

The accuracy of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the evaluation of blunt renal parenchymal trauma was compared with that of contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) and ultrasonography (US) in a prospective study of 12 patients. CT was superior to other methods in identifying and characterising the renal parenchymal lesion, and both CT and US exceeded low field MRI in recognising a perirenal fluid collection. The role of high field MRI in the evaluation of blunt renal trauma requires further study.