Saturday, January 1, 2011

Contraindications to MRI procedure

The principal contraindications of the MRI procedure are mostly related to the presence of metallic implants in a patient. The risks of MRI scans increase with the used field strength. In general, implants are becoming increasingly MR safe and an individual evaluation is carried out for each case.

Absolute Contraindications for the MRI scan:
# Intracranial aneurysm clips (Unless the referring physician is certain that it is made of nonferromagnetic material such as titanium).

# Intra-orbital metal fragments

# Any electrically, magnetically or mechanically activated implants (including cardiac pacemakers, biostimulators, neurostimulators, cochlear implants, and hearing aids).


Relative Contraindications for the MRI scan:
-cochlear implants
-other pacemakers, e.g. for the carotid sinus
-insulin pumps and nerve stimulators
-lead wires or similar wires (MRI Safety risk)
-prosthetic heart valves (in high fields, if dehiscence is suspected)
-haemostatic clips (body)
-non-ferromagnetic stapedial implants

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