MRI SAFETY 

Now Entering the MRI Zone

Magnetic Resonance Imaging or MRI, as the name suggests uses an extremely strong magnet to give us clinical information about a patient that is not otherwise available. The use of this magnetic field requires safety measures that MUST BE FOLLOWED!

Everyone who enters the magnet room must be questioned about medical implants, electrical devices or objects on or about their body. 

Questionnaires must be completed prior to exam.  If patients are unable to answer, family consent must be obtained.  This is very important to determine if any safety issues or concerns exist. 

Not everyone is a candidate for an MRI exam. Patients with implanted electronic devices such as cardiac pacemakers or neurostimulators are not candidates for MRIs. Patients with diseases that cause involuntary movements (such as Parkinson’s) may not be good candidates for an MRI unless their movements can be controlled with medication/sedation. 

Below is a list of medical devices that should not enter the magnet room. This is not an exhaustive list:

• Wheel chairs

   • Carts

                      • Beds

                      • IV Pumps

• Drug delivery systems (PCA pumps, etc.)

• Oxygen Cylinders

• Unapproved IV Poles

• Swan-Ganz Catheters

                      • Intracoronary Stents

                      • Medical instruments

                      • Crash Carts

 Below is a list of personal items that should not enter the magnet room. This also is not an exhaustive list:

�� Bobby Pins

�� Hair Pins, Barrettes  

�� Coins

                    �� Watches

                    �� Glasses

�� Pocket knives

�� Keys

�� Firearms

                    �� Credit cards

                    �� Metal pill containers

�� Necklaces

�� Earrings

�� Any other body jewelry, regardless of location

                     �� Metal dental partials

                     �� Pens, pencils 

Even in the event of an emergency, all the safety rules must be observed. The magnet is always on! (Have you ever tried to turn one off?) 

If a patient has difficulty breathing or experiences another type of medical emergency, they must be brought out of the magnet room in order to receive medical treatment. 

It is also important to screen patients for claustrophobia before an MRI. Claustrophobic patients may be able to tolerate the procedure with sedation, provided their claustrophobia is not severe.

Other patients may also benefit from mild sedation to reduce agitation or apprehension during the exam to get the best possible results. Remember that motion also causes a limited exam. 

Always check with the MRI technologist before entering the magnet room. No one can walk into or carry any object into the magnet room that has not been approved. 

If you have any questions about the safety of medical devices, tubes, equipment, implanted devices, etc. in the magnet room, please feel free to call the MRI technologist. They have resources available to determine the safety of many products. You may also visit the MRI Safety website at

www.mrisafety.com .

Let’s keep our patients & ourselves safe in the magnet room!