Can you find stress fractures by regular x-rays, or do you need a MRI?

the doctor gave me a regular x-ray and said i had no stress fracture, but my coaches think i have a stress fracture because ive been dealing with shin splints for over a month and been running on them. so is the doctor just stupid giving me a xray instead of an MRI?

Sometimes, a stress fracture can be seen with x-rays, but it is usually after the body has begun to heal the fracture.

" X-Rays usually do not show a stress fracture, but they may show evidence of bone attempting to heal around the stress fracture. Further studies, including an MRI or bone scan may be necessary if the diagnosis is unclear or if the problem does not resolve with treatment."

http://orthopedics.about.com/cs/otherfra...

"Stress fractures may not be apparent on regular X-rays until about three to four weeks after signs and symptoms begin. If your X-rays appear normal but your doctor suspects a stress fracture, the diagnosis may be confirmed with various imaging techniques 鈥?including magnetic resonance imaging, bone scans or computerized tomography (CT)."

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/stress-...

But, your doctor's treatment might be the same, even if a stress fracture is diagnosed. What I mean is that your treatment for a stress fracture might be shin splints. So, an expensive study, such as a MRI, might not change your course of treatment, just take money out of your pocket! Best wishes.....

x-rays can determine bone fractures. MRI "takes pictures" or looks into the muscles and other tissues that could not be be seen through x-rays...

Nope. Hes correct. I was in a car crash and they performed a whole body xray. That one xray of my back picked up the one and only stress fracture. An xray will work just fine.

you need an mri because unless the stress fracture broke all the way through the bone you can't see it. if you feel an isolated pain in ONE spot only, and can't remember a specific time you hurt yourself, then you most likely stress fractured it. The truth is you'll probably have to wait a while to get an MRI, and then wait a while to get the results back and by that time you'll probably be feeling better--i know because that's exactly what happened to me. just come to the conclusion that you did stress fracture your shin. I stress fractured my own shin and they were first confused with shin splints. Rest your legs and do not run. even if you don't have a stress fracture you should be resting it anyway because you're in pain. I continued to run too soon after my injury and now i have a stress fractured shin and foot. You do not want anything worse to happen, trust me it sucks