# Head MRI tomorrow. Is it scary? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 29, 2023, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/head-mri-tomorrow-is-it-scary/992267 "2023-10-29T14:33:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2023, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/head-mri-tomorrow-is-it-scary/992267/81 "2023-10-30T16:53:28Z")
> [@SpinyNorma](#): > > Different things work for different people. Oh, definitely! I didn’t mean to imply that blocking the eyes might not be helpful for some. ---
**Author:** ![SpinyNorma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e5b9ba/32.png) [@SpinyNorma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpinyNorma)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2023, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/head-mri-tomorrow-is-it-scary/992267/82 "2023-10-30T17:42:00Z")
No worries! I didn’t take it as such. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2023, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/head-mri-tomorrow-is-it-scary/992267/83 "2023-10-30T18:00:17Z")
Right. It can take a lot longer depending on what their looking for. MRIs for my knees were brief. The last one for a full back scan was at least 45 minutes and the operator explained they had to slow down and ‘tune things’ to get the best resolution. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2023, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/head-mri-tomorrow-is-it-scary/992267/84 "2023-10-30T20:04:31Z")
Two issues: 1) is the object going to be dangerous in the scanner, or 2) is it going to affect the image? A small metal object is probably okay, even a ferromagnetic one. The scary traumatic object flying across the room is probably not an issue here. But also what might be a problem is if the object is present on where you’re planning to take the image. A ring when they’re doing your head, sure, not so much if they need to scan your hand. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2023, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/head-mri-tomorrow-is-it-scary/992267/85 "2023-10-31T00:37:28Z")
@Napier and @thelurkinghorror; interesting points, thanks. I’ll have to see if my ring vibrates next time. I remember seeing my first MRI images (back in 1979 when it was called NMR) when I was a 1st year med student. The images were fuzzy as hell, took hours and hours to obtain, and IIRC it took the combined runtime of computers at Johns Hopkins Hospital and Hopkins Applied physics lab to process them, but damn everyone was excited as hell. It took a few more years for them to become used clinically. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2023, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/head-mri-tomorrow-is-it-scary/992267/86 "2023-10-31T15:37:07Z")
> [@Napier](#): > > > [@Pardel-Lux](#): > > > > MRI machines are a little technical wonder, when you think of them and how they work. > > That they are. Fun fact, at least as of a few years ago when I was learning about it, magnetic field intensities are measured in teslas in the SI unit system. These are named after Tesla himself (who pronounced his name “Tezla”). Those superpowerful neodymium-iron-boron magnets have a field intensity near their pole surfaces of about 1 tesla (1 T). Medical MRI machines generally have at least this field intensity, and perhaps more. Somebody here mentioned a 3 T machine being specified for their imaging, for example. As a rule of thumb, an MRI machine costs about $1,000,000 per tesla. > > > [@ThelmaLou](#): > > > > you can’t wear anything metal > > > [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > > > Not so. You can’t wear anything magnetic. > > I think it’s more subtle than this. Ferromagnetic substances, like iron, will feel forces inside the powerful magnetic field. Folks worry about metal fragments inside the eye, and some implants like aneurism clips, for fear they’ll jump about scrambling soft tissue. Nonferromagnetic substances may still move about a bit, because of their interactions with the variation in the magnetic field. For example, my gold wedding band, which is a closed loop of conductor like a winding in an induction motor, vibrates. Further back, they would tell me the ring had to come off, but in more recent years they said it was OK (I take it off anyway because I dislike the vibrations). Also, metals confuse the signal, so there are image artifacts around pieces of metal. I have fixation plates in my neck, and both MRI scans and CT scans get image artifacts around the plates, though the effect of the metal is different so the two kinds of scans get different image artifacts. So, the rules about metal are sometimes subject to some judgement (though steel in the eyes or brains, I bet, are non-negotiably forbidden). I mentioned the 3T machine. It was specified for me because they needed a brain scan with and without contrast. I was told the higher resolution was needed. That’s when it was explained to me that the resolution on an open MRI is fine for things like your shoulder but not for everything. I have a spinal fusion and felt nothing during a MRI. Titanium is non-magnetic of course. If I felt it moving I would have freaked the fuck out. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2023, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/head-mri-tomorrow-is-it-scary/992267/87 "2023-10-31T15:45:13Z")
> [@teelabrown](#): > > Done. Glad it went smoothly. Hope today’s goes as well. ---
**Author:** ![teelabrown](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/teelabrown/32/8412_2.png) [@teelabrown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teelabrown)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2023, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/head-mri-tomorrow-is-it-scary/992267/88 "2023-10-31T17:08:31Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Titanium is non-magnetic of course. I do have a clip at the place where I used to have a gall bladder. IIRC, it’s made of titanium. I informed the tech about this, and he seemed unconcerned. And they did put a foam cushion under my knees. It was a terrifically comfortable one and I asked if I could take it home with me. He laughed and told me to look for them online as “foam wedge cushions”. It was much firmer and more supportive than a plain pillow, which I use when I lie in bed to read. ---
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2023, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/head-mri-tomorrow-is-it-scary/992267/89 "2023-10-31T23:17:58Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > I have a spinal fusion and felt nothing during a > MRI. Same here. And the usual assortment of metallic crowns and fillings. Though I don’t know if we would have felt movement if it was motivated the same way my ring was. The ring can move pretty easily and fingers are designed partly to be good at sensing movement. My fixation plate spans C4-5-6-7, which is most of the length of my neck, and the plate is firmly attached to it and so could only have moved that big chunk of spine. Also, I think the shape of the metal would be important. For example, a gold ring is nearly as good a conductor as you can get at room temperature (it’s right up there with copper and silver), and it’s an circle whose open area intercepts magnetic field lines. If there were a single cut through the ring to break the circuit, the motion would have almost completely vanished. I have an older cervical fixation plate, and it doesn’t have a lot of enclosed area. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2023, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/head-mri-tomorrow-is-it-scary/992267/90 "2023-11-01T02:13:01Z")
Were yours done for a diagnosis, or just to test the machine? (ETA: Upon re-reading it, I see that you saw them but they weren’t yours.) A pharmacist at my old hospital said that her husband, who was a pharmacist at a nearby critical access facility, volunteered to break in the MRI at that facility, and he knew something was wrong when he looked out the window in the room and everyone was standing there with their mouths hanging open. He didn’t know until then that he had an aortic aneurysm that was on the verge of dissecting, and had his chest cracked and this repaired a few days later. I also had a pen pal back in the day who underwent a head MRI around that same time you did(n’t?), also to test a machine, and they found several anomalies in her brain, one of which I remember being an extra ventricle. You never know what’s going to show up, I guess. The Monrovia, Liberia hospital that was at the epicenter of the 2014 Ebola outbreak was gifted an MRI machine a few years later/ago, and not only did the hospital have to be rewired to accommodate this, the whole city’s electrical did too. That’s something to think about. ---
**Author:** ![InternetLegend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/internetlegend/32/13154_2.png) [@InternetLegend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InternetLegend)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2023, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/head-mri-tomorrow-is-it-scary/992267/91 "2023-11-01T05:11:01Z")
I just had a surprise MRI today! 😃 Nothing to get worked up about; I had a breast MRI scheduled for next week (that I’d forgotten about) and they called me yesterday evening to ask if I could take a spot where they’d had a cancelation this afternoon. I completely forgot, as I do every time, that they’d be sticking me to put in contrast at the end, and that was the worst part of the procedure. As a special bonus, they also did my mammogram today so I don’t need to go back next week. Best of all, if this one comes out clear, I’m done with yearly breast MRIs and can go back to a regular screening schedule! ---
**Author:** ![teelabrown](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/teelabrown/32/8412_2.png) [@teelabrown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teelabrown)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2023, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/head-mri-tomorrow-is-it-scary/992267/92 "2023-11-13T17:53:09Z")
Just a follow-up: the ENT read the MRI results and said they looked normal. IOW, I had my head examined, and they didn’t find a thing. The tinnitus, ear pressure, and vertigo has faded to nothing, anyway. I don’t know what was up with that. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2023, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/head-mri-tomorrow-is-it-scary/992267/93 "2023-11-13T20:02:47Z")
> [@teelabrown](#): > > The tinnitus, ear pressure, and vertigo has faded to nothing, anyway. I don’t know what was up with that. Those are 3 very common associated symptoms that most folks have at some time in their lives that most commonly have no discernable cause. I get it a every month or two, sometimes for a few minutes, sometimes for a half hour. All evaluations have been negative. I’ve sent over a hundred patients for workup of those symptoms and never had anything significant get found. Sweet/sour mystery of life! ---
**Author:** ![teelabrown](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/teelabrown/32/8412_2.png) [@teelabrown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teelabrown)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2023, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/head-mri-tomorrow-is-it-scary/992267/94 "2023-11-13T21:24:18Z")
Well, I had never had anything like it in my first 66 years of life, and then suddenly woke up to very bad tinnitus one morning. Then two horrible bouts of vertigo one and two weeks later, the first one happening right in the doctor’s office when I went to see him about the tinnitus. It scared me silly, it did. I hope it stays away for good. I don’t know how folks cope who have chronic vertigo. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2023, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/head-mri-tomorrow-is-it-scary/992267/95 "2023-11-17T23:46:18Z")
I have an aneurism somewhere in my head that they like to examine periodically. I am not subject to claustrophobia, so that is not an issue. Because the aneurism is on a vein (artery ?) my MRI is called an MRA. The noise and duration are not comfortable, but can be tolerated. The harder things for me are the ways in which my body has to remain in a specific position, leading to the onset of a muscle cramp and, worse, a plastic shield/helmet that they place over my head to hold it in place that presses on (smashes) my nose and chin. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/head-mri-tomorrow-is-it-scary/992267/96 "2023-11-18T01:46:44Z")
> [@teelabrown](#): > > Just a follow-up: the ENT read the MRI results and said they looked normal. IOW, I had my head examined, and they didn’t find a thing. I remember my first MRI, back in '05 (I suddenly developed tinnitus and lost the high frequencies in my right ear [permanently so far] for no apparent reason). Got the MRI with the gadolinium and, because I do such things I looked at the slides and read the report (they were still giving you actual slides and printed reports back then). The depiction of what was observed about the contents of my skull included the key term: “unremarkable” Boy did I spend _days_ grumbling about “_ **unremarkable**?? the nerve!_” 😝 ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/head-mri-tomorrow-is-it-scary/992267/97 "2023-11-18T02:02:00Z")
Had one today. I’m usually cool with them. No problem. But I was so uncomfortable in that thing. My elbows hurt. I’ve had a neck thing and it was pulling and hurting. I swear my hair was being pulled outta my head. It got over with. But, man what a morning. Oh, They wouldn’t give me a Valium 'cause they jerks and I told them so!! ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/head-mri-tomorrow-is-it-scary/992267/98 "2023-11-18T02:12:46Z")
I like to say that my annual mammograms have, for the past 5 years anyway, not found anything. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/head-mri-tomorrow-is-it-scary/992267.md?page=4)