Navigating gastrointestinal challenges in genetic myopathies: Diagnostic insights and future directions

Table 7 Comparison between magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography in gastrointestinal myopathies

Feature	MRI	Computed tomography
Tissue contrast	Superior soft tissue contrast; excellent for detecting muscle atrophy, fibrosis, and inflammation	Moderate contrast; better for bony structures and acute bleeding
Radiation exposure	No ionizing radiation—safer for children and repeated follow-ups	Uses ionizing radiation, which may be concerning for pediatric patients and those needing serial imaging
Visualization of smooth muscle	More detailed assessment of intestinal wall abnormalities, fibrosis, and motility issues	Less sensitive in detecting smooth muscle pathology
Gastric and intestinal motility	MRI can provide cine imaging for real-time assessment of gastric emptying and intestinal movement	Lacks dynamic imaging capability for motility disorders
Bowel obstruction and pseudo-obstruction	Can differentiate between true obstruction vs pseudo-obstruction based on bowel wall motion	Effective for detecting acute bowel obstructions but lacks functional assessment
Detection of liver and pancreatic involvement	Better visualization of hepatic and pancreatic steatosis, common in metabolic myopathies	Good for detecting structural abnormalities, such as tumors or calcifications
Practical limitations	Longer scan time, requires patient cooperation, contraindicated in patients with metal implants	Quick scan time, widely available, useful for emergency settings

MRI: Magnetic resonance imaging.