MRI safety, especially for newbies

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Monty Python

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Seeing is believing, in case you've never experienced this yourself.

http://simplyphysics.com/flying_objects.html# 😱


The magnet is also infamous for erasing the information stored in your Casio geek watch, on you credit card/ID card magnetic stripe, etc.

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I had a Sharpie pen in my pocket, you know, the fine-tip one with a metallic pocket clip, and that sucker flew into the MRI scanner when I was close to the coil and leaned over. The patient was in the tube. Fortunately, the MRI tech was really cool and laid back and didn't make a big issue out of it. Didn't hit the patient. We just fetched it out. No report filed. I would've gotten my butt chewed for that one.

Just remember, something as small as a clip on a pen is potentially dangerous.

-copro
 
I guess that means clit rings, nipple rings, and Prince Alberts are out too...

Nah, it's okay as long as they are securely attached and don't generate too much of a Gauss field. 😀

-copro
 
A couple other things to watch out for with MRIs. Armor endotracheal tubes, proseal LMAs, and the long flexible LMAs. They don't cause the same kind of damage you see in the pictures above, but for brain MRIs the metal in the rings can interfere with the images.
 
One of our MRI techs told me it cost's around 60K to turn the magnet off and on.
 
Ah, the joy of being able to say "we don't do MRI cases". We told our Rads guys that unless they foot the bill for an entire collection of MRI-compatible anesthesia equipment (machine, monitors, carts, IV pumps, absolutely everything) that we would NEVER do an MRI case. And we never have. 😉 I guess they'd rather spend the money on their toys instead of ours.
 
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