MRI

[ignis]

Can anyone advise please........  After seeing the Senior Dr/Professor  yesterday was told best to have a MRI brain scan..........  appointment was made [for next week] the lady making the appointments asked if I had any metal inserted anywhere ? she did mention teeth !!  only 15 hours later did I remember in 2004 I had a lot of work done on my teeth = Bridge + 6 Crowns, 2 teeth many years before I had root filling and these were both fitted with 3x mettle prongs each....    

 

Not easy to get to the Hospital, so wondered should I tell/ask before the MRI day about this ?

 

Been seeing the eye Dr for 2 years, for past 18 months have bad head, getting worse, constantly 24/7 the only pain killer that gives any relief is Tramadol  .... only yesterday did she call the Professor, lots more tests advised a MRI scan to see what is going on behind the eyes or check for a brain Tumor

Edited November 15, 2018 by ignis

[KittenKong]

40 minutes ago, ignis said:

Not easy to get to the Hospital, so wondered should I tell/ask before the MRI day about this ?

In theory ferrous materials may cause a problem, but you should inform them of any metals present in your body and let them decide whether they pose a risk or not. Cant you phone them or email them?

[lovelomsak]

I do not know about the metal part . But would advise you make sure the hospital has some one on staff that can translate what the MRI produces. I have paid good money in Thailand for MRI's in the past  and doctor and staff could not even translate the data. Could be a complete waste of money.

[Sheryl]

It very much depends on the type of material that was used. Metal dental implants like posts and dental fillings can affect the accuracy of the MRI when it is the head that is being scanned, as in your case.

 

They usually will not cause a problem to the patient but it does depend on the type of material used.  Fiber posts, titanium posts and anything made from precious alloys, as well as the  amalgam commonly used for fillings will nto pose a problem to use, though titanium and precious alloys may still cause some degree of artifact on the resulting images when located in the same areas being scanned.

 

If  a non-precious metal alloy  was used for any of the posts then the magnetic force may exert a pull on them.

 

If you are able to ascertain that  the metal used was titanium or precious alloys then you are safe in the procedure but should still inform the MRI technician and later your doctor so that they are aware that there may be artifact as a result. Alternatively you might inform your doctor ahead of time in cause s/he prefers to order a CT scan as you would not want to end up having to do both.

 

If you cannot ascertain what type of metal was used in your dental work, you should consult your doctor as to whether to proceed or consider a CT instead, as CT does nto use magnetic forces.