The tragic death last year of a six-year-old boy at a Valhalla, N.Y., medical facility has brought to the forefront the need for stricter safety procedures and policies in MR suites everywhere. On July 27, 2001, an oxygen cylinder, brought into the room to care for the boy’s respiratory condition, was drawn magnetically into the MR scanner, striking the boy in the head. The boy, who was afflicted with other ailments, died two days later.

After an internal review of the incident, the facility CEO said in a prepared statement that an “accident of this kind could have happened at any hospital or radiology facility in the U.S. and could still happen even today.” The final report did not attribute blame to any individual, but did result in 32 safety changes at the institution, ranging from enlarged safety zones to new warning signs to secure the area.

Emanuel Kanal, M.D., professor of radiology and neuroradiology and director of magnetic resonance (MR) services at the University of Pittsburgh (Pa.) Medical Center (UPMC), is one of the nation’s leading authorities on MR safety. He serves as a consultant to the FDA on MR safety issues and has chaired or served on MR safety committees for more than 17 years. He also sits on the American College of Radiology’s (ACR) Task Force on Patient Safety and chairs the ACR’s Blue Ribbon Panel on MR Safety.

As of press time, the panel had just received notification of final approval from the ACR for the panel’s recommendations on how facilities can make the MR environment safer for patients, healthcare practitioners, emergency personnel and anyone else who might have access to an MR suite. Medical Imaging recently spoke with Kanal on the current state of MR safety.

Please refer to the April 2002 issue for the complete story. For information on article reprints, contact Martin St. Denis