Making MRI Scans Safe for Women with Implanted Devices

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is already well-established as a premier non-invasive imaging technology, and now women can count on MRIs for early detection of breast cancer.
However, according to Biophan Technologies' CEO Michael Weiner, women with implantable pacemakers, defibrillators, and other medical devices may not have cause to rejoice just yet -- patients with many implantable devices still cannot undergo MRIs.

Earlier this year, the New England Journal of Medicine published a study that focused on the function and effectiveness of MRI in the detection of breast cancer. MRIs use magnetic fields to highlight and differentiate between normal and abnormal tissue.
In nearly 1,000 women diagnosed with breast cancer in one breast, a MRI scan was able to detect breast cancer in the other breast in 3 percent (30 out of 969) women. The presence of these abnormal tissues was missed by both mammography and clinical examination.

However, patients with breast cancer who also have implanted devices cannot be exposed to MRI, says Weiner, whose company specializes in technology for making implantable devices safe and visible under MRI imaging.

According to Weiner, the trouble lies with the implanted leads, which contain metal wires that connect the devices to tissue, as well as other metallic devices that act as antennas and absorb energy from the MRI machine. This can cause the tissue near the lead to heat up as well as generate voltages that can cause potentially fatal arrhythmias (irregular heart beat), rapid heartbeats in heart tissue, and other problems in the brain and nervous system.