MRI Scan

[Drusilla]

My doctor has decided to send me for an MRI scan next year and I wondered if anybody can give me any information about it, but more importantly, has anyone had one and what does it entail?

[Jules001]

my son had to have one when he was being investigated to see if he was epileptic and they wanted to rule out any head trauma. I stayed in the room with him whilst he had it done so can tell you about it from my perspective, but obviously not his.
You lie on a doctors type couch and the metal chamber comes over the top, both ends are open so you are not completely enclosed, I believe they have moved on a bit, but the one thing I can remember was the noise, it was like a really noisy pounding, I know it gave me a headache and I was given earplugs to wear, not that they did much good as the noise still penetrated through. It lasted about 5 -10 minutes if I remember correctly but I suppose this could depend on what part of your body you are having scanned. Also we were one of the first appointments in the day and it was absolutely freezing in both the waiting room and the room where the MRI was carried out. My son was asked to wear clothing with no metal bits and not to wear any jewellery. Other than the noise, it is completely painless.

[tigilou]

My mother in law has just had one done she said its like a massive polo mint and nothing at all to worry about she was absolutly brickin it as she was scared of being closed in but she was fine after.

[Hippy]

Magnetic Resonance Imaging involves you lying still on a sort of flat conveyor that moves through the hole in a giant white ring doughnut. This contains a VERY strong magnet, and small radio frequency pulses are played through a coil inside the doughnut. You can neither feel the magnetism nor the pulses.

The magic machine does a sort of radar ping then listens. The pings very slightly stress the electron path of (mostly hydrogen) atoms and then relaxes that stress. The electrons ring like when you hit a wine glass rim, but of course to a much smaller degree and at a much higher frequency. The detector sees these signals and resolves them into a series of image slices through your body as it passes through the doughnut.

Back in the computer room the signal is processed so that the doctors can see your insides without any invasive X-rays. They can also put the pictures together to form 3-D images of your insides.

There is really nothing to worry about. No pain; no chemicals; no radiation. Just relax. The hardest part will be to keep still for 15 minutes. Haha!

[halfadaily]

Hi Drusilla, I had a mri scan a few months ago. This was on my head and involved me laying on a trolley and then the trolley was rolled into the scanner so that my head and neck were enclosed. This can feel a bit claustrophobic but you can stop the scan at any time if you feel uncomfortable. You'll be given headphones to wear that play music to drown out the noise of the scanner. This is like a varied pitch drone. There is no pain involved, I found the hardest part was staying awake as it felt very relaxing. My scan laste 15 mins, but will vary depending on the area to be scanned.

Richard

[Hippy]

P.S. I hope everything is all right and whatever it is they are looking for is either not there or is easily put right. Good luck, Drusilla.

[quibbmedusa]

hi Drusilla, i had one a few months ago for a scan on my brain and ear canals, the noise is deafening, but its not painful, uncomfortable or scary, a little bit claustrophobic but it doesnt last long..15/20 mins max, the results are farely quick too.

You will wonder what you were worried about after the event! But i was terrified when i went in, felt a pr@t after though!

Dont worry!! you will be fine!xx

[Drisgirl]

Ditto all previous answers - I found it comforting to have my husband in for moral support and all he did was rub my feet but that was comforting enough.No where as bad as I thought - you have the button to press anyway to shoot you out but you wont - cos you will keep your eyes firmly shut !!!

[Marvin84]

When I had mine done, I took a cd with me and they played it thru the headphones (not that you can hear it very well - but I was a little nervous and needed the distraction) It is loud and you need to lay very still - but other than that - close your eyes and relax...

Good Luck!

[ursula62]

I had one this year. Completely painless but very noisy. The hardest thing was keeping still for the necessary 25 minutes. Also, they give you a panic button to hold in case you get claustrophobic, and the operator can talk to you while the scan is going on to make sure you are coping OK. Mine kept saying how many minutes were left, which was good as I had told him I am a fidget!

[WendyS]

You lie on a table, are sometimes strapped in certain places to keep you perfectly still and are then slid into what seems like a long tunnel which is quite narrow and the roof of it is only inches from your face. However, it's open at both ends, so you are not totally shut in and in the scanning machine I was examined in, there was a microphone so you could talk to the operator if you needed to.

Don't worry. It can feel a little claustraphobic, but the best thing is to close your eyes and try to totally relax. Start practising your "lying still and relaxing" techniques now so that by the time the scan comes, they will come more easily to you. The noise, once the scanner is operating, is the main disadvantage. It sounds as if there is a pneumatic drill operating immediately over your head. However, no part of your body is physically touched or interfered with at any time during the process so you don't have to worry about any pain.

I have had several MRI scans. The last one involved a total body scan and took an hour, and I'd trained myself to relax so well that I actually fell asleep during it. HONESTLY Drusilla, you will be just fine. Hope you get a good result.

[Kay]

Drusilla. I've had a CT scan. The one they call "The Polo mint or Doughnut". Its a piece of cake:-). For people who need an MRI Scan and may be claustrophobic there are "Open MRI Scanners" in England and Wales.Just enter Open Scanner's on Google. Its between �50 -80 for an open scan but well worth it if claustrophobic and,no noise!

[scooby20_10]

its almost like a cat scan.where u get on this like table thing and they slide you under this thing whic is closed in and you have to lay there while they scan your head or some part of the top of your body. You have to not be clostrophobic(incorrect spelling)or else its gonna kinda scare you.