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24 May 2012

Answer to Question #64 Submitted to "Ask the Experts"

Category: Medical and Dental Patient Issues — MRI

The following question was answered by an expert in the appropriate field:

What research has been done (and what were the findings) on the effects of EMF on MRI patients?

There has been a large body of research on the safety of MRI units. This research has resulted in safety limits being set on the strength of the magnetic field (B) used in the MRI unit, the rate of change of the magnetic field (dB/dt), and the specific absorption rate (SAR) of radiofrequency energy in the patient's body. In addition, access control and posting of fringing magnetic fields are recommended to prevent elecromagnetic interference with pacemakers in the vicinity of MRI units. An excellent source for information on research studies on safety of MRI units is a General Electric website. This site lists numerous articles published in the scientific literature on subjects ranging from RF heating of the patient, magnetic field stimulation of peripheral nerves, effects on extraneous objects such as surgical clips, effects on image quality, and electromagnetic interference effects. Radiation from electronic products, including RF and magnetic fields associated with medical devices, is regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Two FDA reports which contain information on safety requirements for MRI units are:

Gary Zeman, ScD, CHP Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

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