Table 1.

Advantages and disadvantages of different imaging technologies.

	Advantages	Disadvantages
Magnetic resonance imaging	1. High resolution images 2. Objective measures; not dependent on operator 3. Captures wide area of muscle 4. Has been widely used in IIM	1. May not be widely available 2. Expensive 3. Takes a relatively longer time to complete than other modalities 4. Lack of standardized protocol for muscle imaging 5. Lack of widely accepted and easily available quantification
Ultrasound	1. Easily accessible 2. Can be performed at bedside/clinic setting 3. Rapid screening	1. Limited by the skill of the operator 2. Quality of the image can be limited by anatomy and muscle depth 3. Muscle edema may result in too small a change in echogenicity
Electrical impedance myography	1. Less resource intensive 2. Minimal post-processing required 3. Rapid screening 4. Can be performed at bedside/clinic setting	1. Still a research tool and not widely available 2. Only provides quantified values, but no images 3. The interpretation of numerical parameters is not well-established in the clinical setting