MRI

[Emily]

Hey Guys!!
My doctor is in the middle of scheduling an MRI on my knee to check for tears and other damage he can see from the outside. I was wondering if any of you that have had MRI's would mind telling me what they are going to do? Some people have told me you lay there some people have told they inject ink into your joint, and a bunch more stuff. Thanks for any and all information you can give me!!!

Emily

[Sofia]

Hi Emily  
When I had a MRI on my legs I just laid there on this (very cold) stretcher-kindofthing, and then it slided into this big tunnel. I had headphones on and listened to some music, and the nurse talked to me through them and told me "only 15 minutes left" and other encouraging things I also had an emergencybutton in my hand, if I got claustrofobica or something. It took a while, but I just rested, I was really tired that day. Nothing to worry about. Of course, this was in Sweden, but I guess it's the same everywhere, same machines

Things to remember: you have to lay completely still so make sure you lie comfortably before you enter the MRI-tunnel. The nurse will probably ask you if you're comfortable beforehand, but make sure you are It takes a while.
 Another thing to remember is that you can't have anything of metal on you. Remember to take of your rings, earrings and other jewelry, and dont wear a sweater with metal buttons or zipper.

I've also had MRI on my head, because of my migraine. Then I had to drink some weird stuff. They said that it could "burn" a bit in your stomach, but I just felt a little bit warm, that was all, much easier than I thought I was nervous but it was really nothing

Good luck! Let us know everything

best wishes
Sofia

[tazmanian_devil]

Here is my MRI place's web page for more information, I don't think you will get an injection, I didn't either time, Theresa http://www.inland-imaging.com/DefaultPage.aspx?id=27       Here is the home page which shows a MRI machine,    http://www.inland-imaging.com/

[katie]

Sometimes there is an extra tube part which hinges shut over one's knee as well as loading you into the main tube. This is, apparently, an extra receiver for the information.

They'll run several series with a pause in between. I suggest you use the pause to wriggle enough to stop your bum going to sleep...

You will need to know your weight (For calibrating the receivers) or they'll weigh you.

Basically, don't worry. It's a bit on the noisy side, but it doesn't hurt, it's actually relatively dull and if you ask nicely they'll show you the pictures afterwards.

Ah... just don't drink too much before you go. Otherwise you spend half an hour in the tube desperately needing the loo.

Personally, I was kind of interested, since I used to work on medical imaging software, but I'd never actually been near a real scanner before...