1. A method for evaluating the behavior and performance of medical devices in vivo, said method comprising the steps of: establishing a database populable with information relevant to a study of the performance of medical devices; qualifying one or more candidates as participants in said study for evaluating the performance of said medical devices in vivo by subjecting said candidates to an evaluation process that at least determines the ability of said candidates to safely participate in said study and obtains consent from said candidates regarding said participation; entering information relevant to said candidates and the qualification thereof into said database; determining detailed protocols and MRI parameter settings relevant to said candidates and said study; providing an MRI operable in accordance with said protocols and MRI parameter settings and using said MRI to conduct one or more scans of each candidate; qualitatively analyzing said MRI scans; quantitatively analyzing at least a portion of said MRI scans by determining physical characteristics of at least one of said anatomical structures and said medical device using image analysis software and data analysis and statistical software packages; and populating said database with information indicative of said quantitative and qualitative analyses.