MRI Made Easy (Imaging Systems, Diagnostic Imaging, and Radiology & Nuclear Medicine Guide): MRI in practice for MRI scanner and MRI safety

How would you impress a stranger you meet at a party with your intelligence? You might claim to be a brain surgeon or a rocket scientist. Well Magnetic Resonance (MR) is not rocket science, it is better. MR involves an amazing combination of advanced science and engineering, including the use of superconductivity, cryogenics, quantum physics, digital and computer technology – and all within the radiology department of your local hospital. MR imaging has evolved from unpromising beginnings in the 1970s to become nowadays the imaging method of choice for a large proportion of radiological examinations and the ‘jewel in the crown’ of medical technology.

In any first week of a new job or in a new environment, it takes a little time to become orientated and to find your way around. This guide aims to ease those initial
experiences so that you will feel more like a seasoned campaigner than a raw recruit. The following are your essential instructions:

·         Magnet safety, especially from ferro-magnetic projectiles, is paramount to the safe operation of any MR unit; the MR examination room is probably the most
dangerous environment in the imaging department.

·         Aside from the magnet itself, the coils are the main items of equipment that you will have to learn to handle (don’t break them!), and learn how to position patients comfortably and effectively with them.

·         Good patient cooperation is essential for safe and effective scanning: you will need good people skills.

·         Typically the most common MR examinations are brain, spine and musculoskeletal but we also look at some others in section 6.

·         Enjoy the experience!

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