So, tell me about MRIs...

I have to have one done next Thursday, because my doctor thinks I have an 8th cervical nerve entrapment, possibly because of a ruptured disk. What are they like?

Thanks.

:)

is not being able to move for about 30 minutes.
hope you aren't claustrophobic.

No problem with claustrophobia. Thanks for the info.

:)

in my lumbar region.

You lie on a hard table. The table goes inside a big tube. The tech will tell you the whole time what he/she's doing, to quiet your nerves.

Honestly, if you aren't claustrophobic, it will be a breeze. But I have a touch of claustrophobia, so it kind of unnerved me.

Anyway, once inside the tube, you have to lie perfectly still while the scan is being done. All in all, it takes maybe ten or fifteen minutes.

It's a litle noisy while the scan is being done...but it isn't a bad experience.

if you are claustrophobic. That's how I used to be able to manage them. I hope all is well with you. :hi:

If so I heartily recommend some xanax or something to help you relax, 'cause if you fidget, they have to redo portions of the test.
They are very noisy, sounding like machine gun fire at times. Good luck!

I've had tons of 'em and I forgot to pee before the last one. They kept me in the thing for almost an hour!

There's nothing to it it you're not claustrophobic. You might even fall asleep.

If they ask whether you want music, say yes - it helps. Be sure to pee first! you have to lie still.

It's very strange being in a tube that is about 3 inches from the tip of your nose. My sister is somewhat claustrophobic and she always gets a scrip of Xanax before she goes in but it doesn't bother me at all. I found the whole process facsinating.

Good luck with your disk - I just had one repaired in my neck back in January. Damn slippery things!

How did it go? That's one of the options I'll be looking at, if I do have one.

:hi:

It was my C5 disk and I had an anterior cervical fusion, taking a piece of bone from my left thigh and replacing the disk with it. I'm happy with it - I had it done in January and I have almost full mobility now and no longer suffer the chronic, constant pain I had before.

Recovery took much longer than I expected. I left the hospital the day after my surgery and was able to get around the house okay. The first two months, I got better quickly (though I was not allowed to move my neck and had to wear a brace) but the next four or five months, there seemed to be little change and I was feeling rather grim about it all. My doctor had told me that I'd be back at work within 3 weeks! Which was nonsense because I have a very physical job and I'm not back at it yet! (I could be - I probably could have been back last month but I chose to wait until after the holidays because they are so busy in my field)

I began physical therapy once the bones were fused and that helped greatly to regain mobility and strength. I'm happy I did it - for the most part. I still get a little pain when I overdo and I notice that cool, damp weather seems to make it ache a little. However, I think that will ease up with time, too, judging from other surgeries I've had.

I have a slightly less mobility than those who have no fusion but I had less mobility because of the pain so I figure it's a fair tradeoff. I don't feel limited by it, which is important to me. Good luck!

Have a patient information leaflet(PDF)

or should I say two, the tech did the wrong films the first time. I had to lay still for over an hour and I didn't know I was claustrophobic until then I thought I would lose my mind. But it's (my mind) is gone now so what did it matter lol:shrug:

for an inner ear disorder they decided they needed to make sure wasn't a tumor. Asshat doctor-bill-padding ridiculous-test-ordering nonsense! Anyway, I was all the way up in the horrid tube for a solid 40 minutes, with the clicking and clacking and the parts rotating 3 inches from my face and the laser lines going over my tightly-closed eyes and such. Not fun. Asshat doctor-bill-padding ridiculous-test-ordering nonsense!

You might freak out if you are claustrophobic.

It's a VERY small area...it is worth taking a valium first. It is over in about 30 to 40 minutes provided you make sure you don't move

there is no way I am going in there.

By the fourth it had gotten somewhat easier. I pretend the loud noises are percussion instruments and that I am in the middle of a Grateful Dead concert.

Not bad at all ... basically, you lie on a really narrow cookie sheet and they usually put a pad under your knees so it's not mega uncomfortable. Then they slide you into a really narrow tube where the test (Depending on what its for) takes anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour plus. My guy gives me headphones so the noise doesn't distract too much.. it can get kinda loud, so if you're the kind of person who flinches at loud noises you might want to get a valium or something. Overall though, not bad. I have to get them every six months and there are definitely worse tests in the world. Most of the crappiness is just being bored for that long.

:bounce: :hi:

ain't bad, but only AFTER the neck MRI did they tell me i could bring a CD. DANG. and they couldn't get NPR or the college stations. fuck top 40.

The electromagnetic pulses are pretty loud. Some places put special eyeglasses on you that reflect outside - for all the world it looks like you're actually outside. They'll most likely give you earplugs. You can bring your own CD for them to play - that helps. I generally fall asleep. There's a panic button if you need it. I've had a LOT of MRI's since I was involved in gating studies. Just keep your eyes shut and the pulses are rhythmic and I'll bet you fall asleep like I do.

Don't get an open MRI - they are not nearly as accurate. They were designed for obese people who would not fit in the core. They are marketing it for people who are claustrophobic, but that's just advertising.

True or not, I do not know.

Also, a newer high-power machine gets better image quality.

The quality of open MRI's is not very good. But when someone won't fit into the core, it's better than nothing.

FWIW, I talked with both the Tech and the Radiologist, and that just isn't true anymore. Open is just as good. When they first became available they were not, but now the technology is just as good and much less stressful for those of us who had to be sedated for regular MRI's. :hi:

Mostly doing MRI studies. It's true that open MRI's are better than they used to be, but "closed" MRI's are better too. So there's still a significant gap. I hope your study came out well! They are working pretty hard on effects to help those with claustrophobia (like the glasses I mentioned earlier). It's a problem, but hopefully they'll be able to help people without having to sedate them. :hi: back at cha!

I didn't realize how much until I had to have one and my head wasn't even all the way in the tube. It was all I could do to get through it. If I had my whole head in there I never would have been able to finish it.

If you are at all claustraphobic make sure to tell the doc so they can drug you up.. otherwise it will make you nuts.


other than that they can be loud, make sure you have ear plugs - though they should give you some.


Good luck - hope it goes smoothly

No claustrphobia issue here.

:)

It requires me to lie absolutely still for 30 minutes. That is like an impossibility to me. I would rather have nearly any medical procedure, except a spinal tap. Those are worse.

I am sorry to be a downer. I have a panic attack everytime I have an MRI. I feel like I can't breathe and my heart is skipping beats. Good luck, I hope your experience is nothing like mine.

they don't hurt, and they don't use any kind of radiation. If you are extremely claustrophobic they can be uncomfortable, but other than that most people are fine with them.

Ok, here's my best non-technical overview of how it works:
Basically, they stick you in a giant magnet which looks like a big donut, and apply radiofrequency pulses (not that much different from radio waves) into the magnetic field that you are lying in. This causes the protons (H+) from the water molecules in your body to absorb the energy from the radio pulse and send the energy back out after the radiofrequency pulse is over. This energy is recorded and they can use the energy "maps" (i.e. where the energy pulses came from in your body) to make a picture of the tissues in your body. The different tissues have different amounts of water (think bone vs. fat) so they have different timings of when they give off the energy, and that's how you can tell the difference between tissues.

They ask you to lie still so that you don't blur the image. The loud noises come from switching magnetic fields and also from the cooling system that keeps the magnet temperature steady. You will be asked to wear ear plugs. Sometimes they might ask you take something (a contrast agent) to make the difference between the tissues in your body more easy to see.

As long as you have no metal in your body that will react to magnetic fields, and have nothing like a pacemaker, you should be fine. Just close your eyes, relax, and take a nap. That's what I do every time I volunteer for a scan!


Was that too technical? it is actually v.v. cool. PM me if you want more info.

Edited to say: Yes, open MRIs have lower quality because it's not as easy to control the magnetic field to stay constant throughout.

I think that is pretty cool.

and earth's magnetic field is on the order of 0.001 Tesla (I think)

I was involved in cardiac gating studies. It took a while to get that ironed out since you can't stop the heart. :)

so long as you're not claustrophobic they're really cozy and great! Even if you think you're not claustrophobic, close your eyes as your being slid in. The feeling is a bit disorienting. Heck close your eyes the whole time and take a nap. That's what I do when I don't have a task to do.

Biannual lesion size checks and the originals for the MS diagnosis. It's noisy and cramped, but they are not really a problem if you're not claustrophobic, which you already said you're not.

If you're having a leg done or something, they can give you headphones to wear and have the top of your torso out of the tube. So, it's probably not as boring that way.

But for spine and head, they put you in a crown that keeps your head perfectly still and centered. So, no headphones, no moving.

Worst thing for me was that on the first one, i didn't know it lasted that long to do the non-contrast and contrast test. After the first half, i had to pee! But, they couldn't take me out of the crown. So, i had to suffer through all that vibration and cool air blowing around for the 2nd half. Man, did i have to get to the rest room when that was over! My advice: Avoid too much coffee the day of the test. You'll be glad you did!
The Professor

At times, was in there for over 2 hours. He's not claustrophobic, but was somewhat at first, in which he was prescribed Valium for. He's gotten used to having them, since. It's terribly noisy, but they have earphones.....I'd suggest bringing a cheap pair of ear plugs to use, as well. Good Luck to you.

I had one of my shoulder in August in an open MRI place, although I am not claustrophobic either. Despite what my good friend ProfessorGAC says above, I was given headphones which made the time go by faster. Although it was hard to not move when listening to Jimmy Buffett.

Good luck.

http://www3.americanradiology.com/pls/web1/wwdisparticle.viewart?article_id_in=5

snip-
At first glance, it is easy to see why many patients prefer to have their MRIs done on an Open MR system vs. a Closed MR system. But what about that “image quality and resolution” problem. It is essentially solved with the High Field Open (HFO). But don’t take my word for it, compare for yourself. Here are respective images from the HFO (on the left) and the Conventional “Closed” system (on the right). You be the judge.
-snip

I hope I never have to go in one of those things again.. I'd rather have surgery.