The short answer: The radiologist usually finishes an MRI report within one business day, and often within hours. Emergency scans get a same-day read, sometimes within an hour. Under the 21st Century Cures Act, that report goes to your patient portal the moment it is signed, so you may read it before your doctor does. Hearing from your doctor can take longer, often a few days to two weeks, depending on how the office handles follow-up.
How fast does the radiologist finish the report?
An MRI produces hundreds of images. A radiologist, a doctor trained to read them, reviews the scan and dictates a written report. The RadiologyInfo.org guide to radiology reports explains that the radiologist "sends the report to the person who ordered your test, who then delivers the results to you."
How long that read takes depends on the setting. A 2020 study in Insights into Imaging tracked report turnaround at eleven hospital sites. After the group moved to subspecialty reading, the median time to a final, signed MRI report fell from 1,051 minutes (about 17.5 hours) to 401 minutes (about 6.7 hours). That is typical of a hospital system: a final report inside one business day.
Outpatient imaging centers vary more. Some have a radiologist on site. Others send scans to an outside reading group, which can add a day or two. A full spine or a brain MRI takes longer to read than a single knee. The NIH National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering notes MRI is the preferred exam for the brain, spinal cord, muscles, ligaments, and tendons. Those detailed studies take the most reading time. The scan itself is a separate clock; see how long an MRI takes.
Why does the portal show my results before my doctor calls?
Before 2021, many hospitals held radiology reports back from the portal. A 2021 survey in Radiology of top-ranked U.S. hospitals found that 42% of those with portals delayed reports by 4 days or longer.
The 21st Century Cures Act changed that. Its information-blocking rule, as the American College of Radiology's journal described it, "requires no delay in access to clinical information including radiology reports once entered into the electronic health record." Embargo periods of "days to weeks" were removed. An ONC FAQ confirms a provider may honor a patient's own request to delay a result, but only for as long as the patient asks.
The effect on timing is large. A 2024 research letter in JAMA Oncology studied 5.5 million results at one cancer center. The median time from a result posting to the patient viewing it dropped from 77.0 hours before the rule to 6.4 hours after it. The share of results patients saw before their ordering clinician rose from 37% in 2017 to 75% in 2022. Patients also read MRI reports more than any other type. A 2024 study of 1.68 million exams at NYU Langone found 70.2% of MRI reports were opened in the portal, the highest of any modality.
Most patients want it this way. In a 2023 JAMA Network Open survey of 8,139 patients at four academic medical centers, 95.7% preferred to get results immediately through the portal. Among patients with abnormal results, 95.3% still preferred it. Only 7.5% said reading the result first increased their worry, though that rose to 16.5% for abnormal results (ONC summary).
If you open the report first, read our guide to reading MRI results. The "Impression" section is the radiologist's summary and the part your doctor will focus on.
What do "preliminary" and "final" mean on an MRI report?
Some portals show a report labeled preliminary, then a second version labeled final. The ACR Practice Parameter for Communication of Diagnostic Imaging Findings defines both.
- Preliminary report. A quick read "for the purpose of directing immediate patient management." The ACR says it "very likely will contain limited or incomplete information." A resident or on-call radiologist often issues it at night or on weekends.
- Final report. "The definitive documentation of the results of an imaging examination." A board-certified radiologist signs it. This is the version your doctor acts on and the version that goes in your record.
The two can differ. The ACR requires that "a significant variation in findings and/or conclusions between the preliminary and final interpretations" be reported to the treating doctor as soon as possible. If your portal shows a preliminary report, wait for the final before drawing conclusions.
What happens with STAT and urgent MRI reads?
A STAT order tells the radiology department to read the scan immediately. Emergency and inpatient MRIs, such as a scan for stroke or spinal cord compression, are read within minutes to a few hours. The ordering doctor gets a phone call, not just a report.
The ACR practice parameter sets the rule. In "emergent or other nonroutine clinical situations, the interpreting physician should expedite the delivery of a diagnostic imaging report (preliminary or final) in a manner that reasonably ensures timely receipt of the findings." If the referring doctor cannot be reached, the ACR says "it may be appropriate to convey results directly to the patient."
If your scan was STAT, you will usually hear the same day. If nobody calls, that is often a sign the scan did not show an emergency. It is not a guarantee, so still confirm with the office.
Why is my doctor taking so long to call?
The report is often done in hours. The call can still take one to two weeks. A few reasons:
- The office batches results. Many practices review imaging once a day or a few times a week. Normal or expected results often wait for your next scheduled visit.
- Call volume has gone up. In a 2022 survey at Massachusetts General Hospital, 78.3% of referring providers said patients had contacted them about portal reports. Of those, 83.8% saw more calls after the embargo ended.
- Nobody owns the handoff. The ACR notes "a reciprocal duty of information exchange." The referring doctor "shares in the responsibility for obtaining results of imaging studies ordered and acting on them." Results still fall through cracks.
The Radiological Society of North America reports some health systems now schedule MRIs closer to the follow-up visit so the report and the conversation land together. If you have a choice, book the scan a few days before your appointment, not weeks.
Waiting is stressful. If it affects your sleep or daily function, anxiety.md covers ways to manage health-related worry.
What should I do if I have not heard in 2 weeks?
Do not assume no news is good news. Take these steps.
- Check the portal. Look for the final report and read the Impression section. "No acute findings" or "unremarkable" usually means a normal scan, but your doctor should still confirm.
- Call the ordering doctor's office. Ask two questions: has the doctor reviewed the report, and what is the plan? Ask for a callback date.
- Call the imaging center if the portal is empty. Confirm the report was finalized and sent to the correct doctor. Misrouted reports still happen.
- Request a copy in writing. HIPAA gives you the right to your records. Per ONC's summary of your health information rights, providers must deliver copies within 30 days in most cases. Most imaging centers hand over the report the same day.
- Get a second read if you need one. Your doctor can order a second opinion, and some academic centers offer this directly to patients.
New to the process? What to expect at your first MRI walks through scan day so the results step is not a surprise.
The bottom line
The radiologist's report is usually done within hours to one business day. Emergency scans are read immediately, with a phone call to your doctor. Because of the Cures Act, the report posts to your portal as soon as it is signed, and most patients now see it before their doctor does. The call from your doctor is the slow step, and it can take up to two weeks. After that, call the office, then the imaging center, and request the report in writing.
Last updated: August 2026. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Talk to the doctor who ordered your MRI about your specific results and what they mean for you.