Actually, I don't think you can get an accurate dx of a chiari malformation without doing an MRI.

I have this malformation and had surgery in 1996 to help relieve some of the symptoms I was having i.e. AWFUL headaches, swallowing problems, along with loss of fine motor skills and my balance.

They took out a small piece of my skull at the base of my brain along with a vertebrae and then sewed in a dura match, made with cow's skin, to hold my brain in place.

I tell people that my brain was just too big for my head......which it was.....technically .

I still have some nerve damage because of the length of time it took to make the correct diagnosis. Sad, because many doctors just assumed my symptoms, very bad headaches, fatigue, etc. were just a physical manifestation of my depression and stress.

I was finally sent to a speech therapist to help me "relearn" how to swallow. I told her that if I were under a lot of stress that I would EAT, not FORGET how to swallow!! SHE finally sent me to a neurologist and then to a neurosurgeon.

I still have problems, but every 6 months I meet with my team of doctors and get an MRI, among other tests to make sure that my brain is still in the right place

If you want more information regarding chiari malformation, along with other issues associated with it, the best site is: ASAP.org

Hope this helped give you a bit more info and feel free to PM me with any questions too.

Take care everyone