Start with X-rays for shoulder pain, then move to MRI for soft-tissue damage like rotator-cuff tears, or CT for bone problems and fractures. Match the imaging to what you're actually looking for.
So you have shoulder pain, what kind of imaging do you need? Well, first off, I think everyone should have a plain x-ray because you really got to see the forest for the trees. Many people think, well, I got to have an MRI right away, but there's a lot of things you can pick up on x-ray that give you a good idea of what's going on without jumping to an MRI. And sometimes an MRI just creates unnecessary findings. But if somebody needs advanced imaging, there's basically MRI and CT scan. And the difference really is that MRI is best for looking at soft tissue. So this is things like rotator cuff or labral tears, especially if somebody's a dislocation. CT scan we use when somebody is looking at bones, somebody breaks their bones, or when we're looking at arthritis and planning for shoulder replacement. So those are the main differences— CT being bone and MRI being soft tissue.
