Artifacts at Breast MRI: Appearances and Solutions

MRI of the breast has a key role in early detection of breast cancer and evaluation of the extent of disease. The most common indications for breast MRI include screening in women at high risk for breast cancer and staging of newly diagnosed breast cancer. Additional indications include assessment of response to neoadjuvant therapy, problem solving in equivocal cases, evaluation of carcinoma with an unknown primary tumor, and assessment of implant integrity. Image interpretation can be limited by artifacts-image distortions resulting from technical factors or patient-related issues that degrade image quality and reduce diagnostic confidence. Identifying artifacts, understanding their origins, and applying corrective strategies are critical to improving the reliability of breast MRI assessment. Artifacts can be broadly categorized as technical or patient related. Technical artifacts include those related to image acquisition (eg, inadequate contrast material timing, limited field of view, or radiofrequency interference), reconstruction (eg, misregistration or Gibbs ringing), or tissue characteristics (eg, chemical shift or magnetic susceptibility). Patient-related artifacts often arise from motion, suboptimal positioning, or variations in body habitus. Maintaining high-quality imaging requires adherence to standardized protocols, proper calibration of equipment, and appropriate positioning of the patient. Thoughtful selection of sequences and correct administration of contrast material further enhance image consistency and diagnostic performance. ^©RSNA, 2026 Supplemental material is available for this article.