The Big Ant Health Care Guide

Archive for the ‘Medical Test’ Category

Most of us take an MRI test for granted. We go in, lay down, are fed into a small tube, listen to the obnoxious noises the machine makes for about a half an hour and then we go home. Well, sometimes things don’t always go so smoothly. Read on to learn about the 5 most famous MRI tests of all time.

One – In 2001 a tragedy of unparalleled proportions befell an MRI room in a New York area hospital. What happened in that room changed the lives of many people including the technicians, the hospital administration, and the family and friends of a little 6-year old boy who had the world ahead of him, and dreams to follow.

Michael Colombini’s skull was crushed and his brain fatally injured when a metal oxygen tank was jerked from where it was placed in the room by the MRI’s powerful magnetic field and flew across the room, and violently come in contact with his head. Michael died three days later. If there were any blessing in this horrific and heart-jerking story, it would be that Michael was heavily sedated at the time.

Two – You’d think the MRI technician would know better, but this next one only goes to show that even trained individuals can sometimes have bad judgment. Here’s another case of an MRI scan that didn’t turn out to be quite as routine as everyone expected.

In 2000, an armed, off-duty police officer went to a New York hospital for a routine MRI scan. When he asked about his holstered pistol, the technician told him it would be alright for him to keep his weapon with him. As soon as he entered the MRI room, however, they quickly discovered that wasn’t the best of ideas.

Upon entering the room, the powerful magnetic pull of the MRI machine ripped the officer’s weapon from his hand, and then it discharges one round into the room. Thankfully, the bullet went into a wall and no one was injured in what turned out to be a very dangerous situation. It took three hours to power-down the machine and remove the gun.

Three – In 2009, Diane Thompson was lucky enough to be asked to try out her facilities newest piece of equipment. The Lakewood Ranch Medical Center had recently purchases a new MRI machine, and Diane was on the list of volunteers to try it out. It’s a good thing she did.

The results of her voluntary MRI test revealed she had breast cancer. 56 year-old Diane had been current with her annual mammograms, and remarkably all of them had come back negative. The MRI machine was able to detect the early stages of cancer that a mammogram hadn’t.

Four – This next one isn’t so much a singular MRI test, but rather how the testing has given researchers a promising outlook on the fight to diagnose and treat Alzheimer’s. Researchers at the Cleveland Clinic tested a number of people who had varying early stages of Alzheimer’s. The MRI results revealed that the people with certain markers associated with Alzheimer’s had increased brain activity when asked to identify famous celebrities as well as unfamiliar people. The hope is that one day, the MRI scan can help to diagnose Alzheimer’s which will result in better treatment of the disease.

Five – MRI testing has been performed on the mummified remains of people who lived thousands of years ago. With the help of the MRI testing many clues about whom these mummies are and what caused their deaths have been revealed. The MRI scan has become one of the most efficient pieces of apparatus in the study of mummified remains.

Trudi Buck blogs about how to choose among online MRI technician schools.