Many patients dread the claustrophobia they feel inside the long tubes required for MRI imaging. But Loyola University Health System now offers a powerful new MRI machine that can scan a leg or an arm without your having to climb inside the steel shell and lie there hemmed in, according to a story at newswise.com.
Most MRI machines are tubes that are five or six feet long. Patients lie inside for about 45 minutes. But with the extremity MRI, the patient sits in a comfortable reclining chair and inserts his or her arm or leg into the machine.
The Extremity MRI, available at the new Loyola Center for Health in Burr Ridge, Ill., near Chicago, may very well alleviate the terror for those patients who for various reasons cannot be scanned inside enclosed-tube MRIs, according to the company’s press release.
The hammering sound of the magnets can be disconcerting as well. “Patients with claustrophobia often require sedation to get through the procedure, and it can be upsetting both to children and their parents,” said University of Alabama at Birmingham radiologist Matthew C. Larrison, M.D., as quoted in a story at uabhealth.org. “For a person who just has elbow pain, it would be more comfortable to be imaged with an Extremity MRI unit.”
The Extremity MRI is not just for patients who don’t like tight, enclosed spaces. Patients with conditions such as back pain and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease cannot lie flat on their backs. “With this innovative scanner, we can accommodate extremity imaging for patients in a manner that is efficient, comfortable and effective,” said Dr. Scott A. Mirowitz, chairman of the Department of Radiology at Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine, in the press release.
And the Extremity MRI is not just for adults. A patient needs to remain still while undergoing an MRI scan, according to the story at newswire.com. But some children find it difficult or impossible to lie still inside conventional MRI machines and must be medicated. With the extremity MRI, however, a parent can sit next to the child. The parent can read to or distract the child so the child doesn't squirm.
“For the right case, we no longer have to sacrifice patient comfort to get a high-quality test,” said Dr. Laurie Lomasney, medical director of Musculoskeletal Imaging Radiology. “We also can possibly accommodate physical disabilities.”
If Extremity MRIs are not available in your area, doctors suggest other ways of easing your fears. Wear earphones and listen to calming music. Some people have even tried hypnosis. But if all else fails, ask for a mild sedative before the procedure. Doctors have been asked before!
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Deborah DiSesa Hirsch is an award-winning health and technology writer who has worked for newspapers, magazines and IBM in her 20-year career. To read more of her articles, please visit her columnist page.Edited by
Jennifer Russell
