What is a common cause of motion artifacts in MRI?

Motion artifacts in MRI are commonly caused by patient movement, which includes breathing during imaging. When a patient breathes, especially during longer scan times, any movement can disrupt the acquisition of images, leading to artifacts that appear as blurring or ghosting on the scans. This is a significant issue because MRI imaging depends heavily on precise spatial encoding of the signals being captured. If the patient changes position, even slightly, while the sequences are being collected, the resulting images can be adversely affected.

While inconsistent magnetic field strength, incorrect positioning of coils, and excessive gradient strength can also contribute to other types of artifacts in MRI imaging, they do not specifically relate to motion artifacts caused by patient movement. Inconsistent magnetic fields may lead to distortions in the images but are not a direct result of motion. Similarly, incorrect coil positioning can affect signal reception but is not linked to patient movement as a cause. Lastly, excessive gradient strength may cause issues like ringing artifacts rather than motion-related artifacts. Thus, breathing during imaging stands out as a common and directly impactful cause of motion artifacts.