In one aspect, the present invention is a method for detecting spinal abnormalities using magnet resonance imaging. The method comprises positioning a patient in an upright posture in an imaging volume of a magnet resonance imaging magnet with the spine of the patient adjacent to an antenna and capturing magnetic resonance imaging signals from a first portion of the patient's spine using the antenna with the patient positioned in a first position. The method may further comprise adjusting the patient position along a substantially vertical direction to a second position and capturing magnetic resonance imaging signals from a second portion of the patient's spine using the antenna with the patient positioned in the second position.
