Abstract
Magnetic resonance imaging is used with increasing frequency to provide accurate clinical information in cases of acute brain injury, and it is important to ensure that intracranial pressure (ICP) monitoring devices are both safe and accurate inside the MRI suite. A rare case of thermal brain injury during MRI associated with an overheated ICP transducer is reported. This 20-year-old man had sustained a severe contusion of the right temporal and parietal lobes during a motor vehicle accident. An MR-compatible ICP transducer was placed in the left frontal lobe. The patient was treated with therapeutic hypothermia, barbiturate therapy, partial right temporal lobectomy, and decompressive craniectomy. Immediately after MRI examination on hospital Day 6, the ICP monitor was found to have stopped working, and the transducer was subsequently removed. The patient developed meningitis after this event, and repeat MRI revealed additional brain injury deep in the white matter on the left side, at the location of the ICP transducer. It is suspected that this new injury was caused by heating due to the radiofrequency radiation used in MRI because it was ascertained that the tip of the transducer had been melted and scorched. Scanning conditions - including configuration of the transducer, MRI parameters such as the type of radiofrequency coil, and the specific absorption rate limit - deviated from the manufacturer's recommendations. In cooperation with the manufacturer, the authors developed a precautionary tag describing guidelines for safe MR scanning to attach to the display unit of the product. Strict adherence to the manufacturer's guidelines is very important for preventing serious complications in patients with ICP monitors undergoing MRI examinations.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 1100-1109 |
| Number of pages | 10 |
| Journal | Journal of Neurosurgery |
| Volume | 117 |
| Issue number | 6 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Dec 2012 |
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Keywords
- Antenna effect
- Electromagnetic induction heating
- Intracranial pressure monitor
- Magnetic resonance imaging
- Meningitis
- Thermal brain injury
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Clinical Neurology
- Surgery
Cite this
Overheated and melted intracranial pressure transducer as cause of thermal brain injury during magnetic resonance imaging : Case report. / Tanaka, Reiichiro; Yumoto, Tetsuya; Shiba, Naoki; Okawa, Motohisa; Yasuhara, Takao; Ichikawa, Tomotsugu; Tokunaga, Koji; Date, Isao; Ujike, Yoshihito.
In: Journal of Neurosurgery, Vol. 117, No. 6, 12.2012, p. 1100-1109.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Overheated and melted intracranial pressure transducer as cause of thermal brain injury during magnetic resonance imaging
T2 - Case report
AU - Tanaka, Reiichiro
AU - Yumoto, Tetsuya
AU - Shiba, Naoki
AU - Okawa, Motohisa
AU - Yasuhara, Takao
AU - Ichikawa, Tomotsugu
AU - Tokunaga, Koji
AU - Date, Isao
AU - Ujike, Yoshihito
PY - 2012/12
Y1 - 2012/12
N2 - Magnetic resonance imaging is used with increasing frequency to provide accurate clinical information in cases of acute brain injury, and it is important to ensure that intracranial pressure (ICP) monitoring devices are both safe and accurate inside the MRI suite. A rare case of thermal brain injury during MRI associated with an overheated ICP transducer is reported. This 20-year-old man had sustained a severe contusion of the right temporal and parietal lobes during a motor vehicle accident. An MR-compatible ICP transducer was placed in the left frontal lobe. The patient was treated with therapeutic hypothermia, barbiturate therapy, partial right temporal lobectomy, and decompressive craniectomy. Immediately after MRI examination on hospital Day 6, the ICP monitor was found to have stopped working, and the transducer was subsequently removed. The patient developed meningitis after this event, and repeat MRI revealed additional brain injury deep in the white matter on the left side, at the location of the ICP transducer. It is suspected that this new injury was caused by heating due to the radiofrequency radiation used in MRI because it was ascertained that the tip of the transducer had been melted and scorched. Scanning conditions - including configuration of the transducer, MRI parameters such as the type of radiofrequency coil, and the specific absorption rate limit - deviated from the manufacturer's recommendations. In cooperation with the manufacturer, the authors developed a precautionary tag describing guidelines for safe MR scanning to attach to the display unit of the product. Strict adherence to the manufacturer's guidelines is very important for preventing serious complications in patients with ICP monitors undergoing MRI examinations.
AB - Magnetic resonance imaging is used with increasing frequency to provide accurate clinical information in cases of acute brain injury, and it is important to ensure that intracranial pressure (ICP) monitoring devices are both safe and accurate inside the MRI suite. A rare case of thermal brain injury during MRI associated with an overheated ICP transducer is reported. This 20-year-old man had sustained a severe contusion of the right temporal and parietal lobes during a motor vehicle accident. An MR-compatible ICP transducer was placed in the left frontal lobe. The patient was treated with therapeutic hypothermia, barbiturate therapy, partial right temporal lobectomy, and decompressive craniectomy. Immediately after MRI examination on hospital Day 6, the ICP monitor was found to have stopped working, and the transducer was subsequently removed. The patient developed meningitis after this event, and repeat MRI revealed additional brain injury deep in the white matter on the left side, at the location of the ICP transducer. It is suspected that this new injury was caused by heating due to the radiofrequency radiation used in MRI because it was ascertained that the tip of the transducer had been melted and scorched. Scanning conditions - including configuration of the transducer, MRI parameters such as the type of radiofrequency coil, and the specific absorption rate limit - deviated from the manufacturer's recommendations. In cooperation with the manufacturer, the authors developed a precautionary tag describing guidelines for safe MR scanning to attach to the display unit of the product. Strict adherence to the manufacturer's guidelines is very important for preventing serious complications in patients with ICP monitors undergoing MRI examinations.
KW - Antenna effect
KW - Electromagnetic induction heating
KW - Intracranial pressure monitor
KW - Magnetic resonance imaging
KW - Meningitis
KW - Thermal brain injury
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84870949762&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84870949762&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3171/2012.9.JNS12738
DO - 10.3171/2012.9.JNS12738
M3 - Article
C2 - 23061386
AN - SCOPUS:84870949762
VL - 117
SP - 1100
EP - 1109
JO - Journal of Neurosurgery
JF - Journal of Neurosurgery
SN - 0022-3085
IS - 6
ER -