A pacemaker patient has had an MRI scan in a Highland first.
Developments in pacemakers now mean that MRI scans can be performed on patients with one fitted.
Previously this was not possible because MRI scanners contain an extremely strong magnet which can pull certain metals in any direction.
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In NHS Highland a small but multidisciplinary team comprising of cardiac physiologists, cardiologists, radiologists, radiographers and radiation protection physicists have been working furiously behind the scenes to develop a safe way that will allow patients with pacemakers to have their MRIs locally rather than having to travel out with Highland.
The hard work came to fruition last month when Mr William Munro, a patient with a pacemaker, had a successful MRI at Raigmore Hospital.
Stewart Murdoch, cross-sectional radiographer for NHS Highland, explained that for a number of years there have been discussions at Raigmore about the imaging of patients with pacemakers and they are delighted that patients with pacemakers can now be scanned locally in Highland.
He said: “During university years radiographers were always told that pacemakers are a complete no-no when it comes to MRI imaging. However, with recent developments in pacemaker technology, pathways can now be put in place to ensure that patients with such implants are kept safe in the MRI environment.”
In Highland the board has recently installed two brand new GE Healthcare MRI scanners. This has allowed the team in Highland, along with the support from GE, to take high quality images of patients with pacemaker devices.