The oldest and most respected imaging center in the Tampa Bay area is University Diagnostic Institute (UDI). This premier outpatient medical imaging facility was founded in 1983 on the campus of the University of South Florida, down the street from USF Morsani Clinics and H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center. It was the first specialized high-tech medical imaging center in Tampa. The first Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) Scanner in the Bay area began operations here in 1984. Since then, the original MRI equipment has been upgraded to 1.5 Tesla strength and joined by a 3.0 Tesla MRI that is the most sophisticated and advanced medical imaging scanner available for clinical imaging today.
The 3.0 Tesla MRI system at UDI is a very significant improvement in diagnostic imaging. For bones and joints, it reveals superb anatomical detail, specifically of the joint catilage and associated muscles, tendons, nerves, and blood vessels. In the spine, the 3.0 Tesla scanner offers significantly improved detail of nerve roots, intervertebral discs and ligaments. In the brain, the new techniques are revolutionary; Fractional Anisotropy (FA) and Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) allow direct visualization of white matter fiber tracts, Perfusion MRI scanning allows quantification of blood flow in the brain, and MR Spectroscopy (MRS) makes in vivo studies of hydrogen spectra a reality. Susceptability weighted imaging (SWI) allows accurate identification of even the smallest amount of old blood deposits in the brain.
Among the most dramatic new features of the 3.0 Tesla MRI scanner is BOLD Functional MRI (fMRI) which makes it possible to directly see and record areas of the brain as they are being utilized. The professional staff of fellowship trained, CAQ Certified, senior members of the American Society of Neuroradiology on staff at UDI has the knowledge and expertise to correctly perform and interpret these new types of MRI studies in order to reach the most accurate diagnosis. All UDI staff are memebrs of the American Society of Funcional Neuroradiology (ASFNR).
Computerized Tomography (CT) has also come a long way from the early days in the 1970's when it was first introduced. UDI has continued to stay ahead of medical imaging developments with the most sophisticated, 64-detector CT scanner for extremely fast, low-dose radiation routine medical imaging of any part of the body, myelography, or cutting-edge cardiac CT angiography.
UDI continues to serve the patient's needs for comfort, ease, and respect in a private practice setting on the campus of the University of South Florida (USF) while providing the highest quality medical imaging and rapid diagnosic interpretation comunicated to the referring physician within 24 hours. Convenient hours, location, and acceptance of all insurance plans makes it easy for you to choose the best!
You will also find that our price structure is very reasonable and consistently less expensive that any other imaging center in the greater Tampa Bay area. All credit cards are accepted.
Discounts for cash and/or structured payment plans are available, even as UDI participates fully in all local and national health insurance plans with no exceptions.
At this UDI web site, we encourage you to navigate at your lesure and hope all of your questions regarding our medical imaging services are answered inside. If there is anything else that you might need to know in order to make your MRI or CT experience easier and more comfortable, please contact anyone on our staff by phone or e-mail.
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