Over the past decade, magnetic resonance cholangiography (MRC) has evolved not only as a feasible means of 
noninvasively evaluating the pancreaticobiliary tract but also as a technique with documented diagnostic accuracy in the 
evaluation of obstructive jaundice. We evaluated the success rate of both endoscopic retrograde cholangiography (ERC) and MRC in diagnosing the level and cause of obstruction in 40 patients with obstructive jaundice. The success rate of ERC was 94.7%, but with complications related to therapeutic procedures in two patients. MRC, however, achieved a 95% success rate in diagnosing the level and nature of obstruction. This study demonstrates that MRC has a definite role as a noninvasive diagnostic tool for the evaluation of obstructive jaundice.