My friend long ago had neck surgery and there is a bolt in her neck. Recently she started having knee pain and the local orthopedic can’t get to the source of it. She’s older, in her 60s. So finally after weeks of back and forth the doctor recommends an MRI, but says she needs the medical records about the bolt in her neck before they do the MRI. Why can’t they just do a localized MRI and not worry about the neck? Any clinics to recommend in east Tokyo? Or fact based info on this MRI situation? Thank you, she’s quite miserable and I’m trying to help her.
8 comments
Not sure about the MRI, but in my experience sometimes you have to eat the time and cost and try several clinics (university hospitals are often best) before finding a doctor that can help. Sometimes you run into a quack or one that is ancient and hasn’t kept up with modern medicine. Even if that localized MRI is a thing, she’ll have to find a different doctor to write off on it. Get a second opinion.
Most MRI instruments use a strong magnetic source and require you to lay on a gurney that goes inside the machine to conduct the scan on the knee.
There are some “parts” based MRI machines these days but the limitation to this is they cannot handle ALL body scans and take up space.
I expect they want to understand more about the type of metal used for the bolt to see if the MRI instrument would be applicable or they need to introduce her to a clinic that has these specialized MRI systems
Google search for “MRI accident photos”, and you will understand.
If the bolt has any steel in it, it could (would?) be ripped out of her neck and stuck to the machine the moment she enters the room. The MRI magnet is ALWAYS ON. Just imagine what Magneto (Marvel Comics) could do.
Some metals that is well secured to the bone, such as hip and knee joint replacements, will not be affected by an MRI. The metal won’t heat up or move in response to the machine. But if the metal is near an organ, such as the prostate, distortion could occur. it is possible that the doctor needs to know the type of metal, and exactly how it is secured, to understand if it is safe for her to have an MRI.
Modern implants are usually MRI safe, but as her neck surgery was a while ago, the only way to be sure is with the actual records. For people who can’t undergo an MRI scan, usually they will do a CT scan instead. Maybe find out if that is an option for her condition?
I can’t believe I’m reading this. Look up what MRI means.
MRI machines cannot limit the force of their magnetism even if they are farther away or over a specific part of the body. it will still have a very strong magnetic force, and if the object in their body has any magnetic property then it’ll be pulled into the machine forcefully.
thats like asking, “why cant I just bring my cell phone and keys into the room but put them at the bed where they wont be scanned?!?!” as pointed out by others, the “M” in MRI stands for Magnetic. These are not your home electronics with tiny magnets. And the possible risk to not only the patient, should those magnets get a hold of the bolt and start to pull on it, but the risk to the million dollar machines is also an issue. best to just get the okay from the doctor or the deny. there are other ways to diagnose knee problems.
I have a fusion in my neck (titanium) and almost all implants are MRI safe, but they need to check. Unless it was put in place 30+ years ago, it should be fine.
If she has a bolt/plate/fusion, I have to imagine she had at least one or two post surgery MRIs already in her life.
I have a couple MRIs a year here and didn’t have to bring my medical records with me. I just told them I have had MRIs post surgery and told them what it is made of. That said, just in case, I had copies of MRIs from the states that were taken while my implant was in place to show that it wasn’t an issue. Nobody ever asked for them.
If she never had an MRI post surgery, they should be able to test for ferrous materials if your friend doesn’t have access to her records.
While there’s not much question an MRI would be better, a CT scan would at least be better (show more) than an xray, and perhaps a chance that it would show what’s important. Depending on the pain type/location, and the doc, I think a scope can also be an option.