Is CTA or MRA preferred for assessment of arterial trauma following penetrating trauma?
CTA is preferred. Metallic shrapnel causes susceptibility artifact on MRA, which can obscure the arteries. Active arterial extravasation of contrast material is well depicted on CTA as extraluminal contrast material which does not conform to a known vascular structure. Again, CTA is much faster to perform compared to MRA, which is an advantage for evaluation of potentially unstable patients.
