Functional MRI in the evaluation of oesophageal motility: feasibility, MRI patterns of normality, and preliminary experience in subjects with motility disorders

Purpose. The aim of this study was to introduce functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) with T1-weighted turbo fast low-angle shot (FLASH) sequences in the evaluation of oesophageal motility and morphology, to formulate MRI patterns of normality in healthy subjects and to demonstrate the feasibility of the method by obtaining a preliminary experience in the study of subjects affected by oesophageal motility disorders.