A man in Long Island, New York was critically injured after he entered an MRI room without permission while wearing large, metallic chain around his neck.
The incident occurred at Nassau Open MRI around 4:30pm Wednesday, according to Nassau County police. The magnetic pull of the MRI machine dragged the man into the machine by way of his metal chain.
The man was not supposed to be in the room, and it is unclear based on initial reports why he entered.
Police said the man suffered a “medical episode” and was taken to a local hospital for treatment. He was last described as being in critical condition, PIX11 reports.
MRI machines are designed to find ailments in the body using powerful magnets. The magnets create a strong magnetic field which is used in scanning bodies.
The machines can then produce an image of a person’s soft tissue that allow doctors to look for abnormalities, like tumors, or damage to internal organs, according to the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering.
“The magnetic field extends beyond the machine and exerts very powerful forces on objects of iron, some steels, and other magnetizable objects; it is strong enough to fling a wheelchair across the room,” the institute explains.
This is why MRI technicians are thorough when making sure that patients have no metal on their person — or inside their bodies — before they are imaged using an MRI machine.
“The static magnetic field of the MRI system is exceptionally strong. A 1.5 T magnet generates a magnetic that is approximately 21,000 greater than the earth’s natural field,” according to the University of California, San Francisco’s Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging.
The department noted in a write-up about the potential hazards of MRI machines that magnetic metal objects “can become airborne projectiles”. Even small objects — like paper clips or hairpins — can reach a terminal velocity of 40mph when pulled by an MRI’s magnets.
In addition to the potential dangers from flying metal, MRI machine magnets can also erase credit cards, destroy phones, and shut down pacemakers.
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