So I just had my MRI/MRA done and never experienced this type of pain in any of my other scans. I told the assistant conducting the scan that I felt dizzy and my skin felt on fire (left side and top of head) My eyes we watering so bad! It hurt. The technition told me that it's probably the side cheek pillows that hold your head still. Nope! It hurt so bad and I still hurt. I complained in a friendly manner but was told that never happens. I was never given an explanation. Now I'm here with what feels like a big sun burn on my face and head.. Ouch!
Anybody else experienced this at all?!
Feeling 🌞 burned
Stephanie
Written by
Stepinup
To view profiles and participate in discussions please or .
I have never had an MRA but I have heard of people experiencing discomfort with the dye they use. Hope the burning sensation and pain have worn off by now, blessings Jimeka
Stepinup u should let neuro know. They may be able to use different contrast next time. Or sometimes, they can do a non contrast MRI depending on stable symptoms
I'm so glad you're doing better. I would also get a message to the radiologist, or at least the department in general, as well as your neurologist. That information should not only be in your chart, but also listed as a possible problem for other patients.
Ok I will ask, what is an MRA? MRII know but MRA is a new one on me. After 15+ yrs they're is still new acronyms to amuse me. Royce smiling at the really small stuff.
I sustained burn injury during a routine MRI procedure November, 2016. The incident occurred on a 3Tesla MRI machine during a CSpine/Thoracic scan. I was positioned lying on my back and entered head first. There was no padding used during the study but no part of my body touched the walls of the machine. I held the ‘panic’ button in my right hand and my hands came together just below my sternum in a typical ‘praying’ position so my arms rested on my upper abdomen as opposed to down by my sides. The procedure was started immediately. About 10 minutes into the 2nd procedure (thoracic) I started to feel a sort of prickly vibrating heat hitting my skin. It felt like a kind of rippling wave and I started to feel quite warm. It even seemed to vibrate my T-shirt and penetrate through. It was accompanied by a loud hum which I could hear over and above the typical clicking sound. I had never felt or heard anything like this on previous MRI procedures. The sensation wasn’t excruciatingly painful like you would expect from a contact burn, so I decided I would just see it through. I believe the combined CSpine/Thoracic procedure took approximately 30-40 minutes and I felt this sensation for about the last 10-15.
When I got off the table I felt hot and mentioned it to the technician. She said it was normal to feel a bit warm when the machine had been running for a while. As the day wore on my skin got redder. I felt and looked like I had a bad sunburn. I started applying Aloe Vera gels and lotions. By the next morning I was very red and sore. I was pretty concerned and worried there may be deeper tissue damage. The next day I went to see my doctor. She said she was unfamiliar with MRI related burn injuries but after looking at me felt it had been caused by some type of thermal exposure and advised use of cooling gels and lotions. She consulted with an MRI physicist about the problem and was told : "Regarding the burn: I’d definitely recommend the pt to be checked out by a Dermatologist. MR burns typically starts at subcutaneous fat (no pain receptors) and moves up to epidermis. If the pt was not sedated during the scan and ended up with a burn, there is a clear chance that the patient has damage under the skin that is not visible. I reached out to a Professor of Radiology at USC who looked at my story and pictures and told me this was an RF radiation burn and that I needed to be checked out by a dermatologist ASAP. This was the beginning of a nightmare that has now lasted over 6 months. I have consulted with numerous dermatologists, general practitioners and MRI specialists over this time as well as conducting my own research and have learned a lot about RF frequency injuries and SAR. One of the other MRI physicists I contacted recommended I look at the SAR readings for my tests. He said these are used as an indication of over-exposure and are usually less than 1.
I was able to find these readings in the DICOM data on the disk (shown below). The overheating feeling I experienced started about 5-10 minutes into the Thoracic procedure which coincides exactly with the 4th thoracic sequence. I was between 2.5 and 2.72 SAR for about 7 minutes and this is when the burning occurred. These SAR reading are of course the machine estimates and not the actual SAR on my body. My belief is that sustained exposure to SAR above 2.5 was too much for my body to dissipate the heat and I burned. Having had many MRI’s in the past I wondered why I had never had any problems before, but when I looked back at the SAR readings for numerous previous exams I noticed it was never more than 1.5 and whenever a sequence showed a higher SAR it was followed by one with lower SAR etc.
At 1 year post incident :
Skin – My skin continues to hurt wherever the thermal rays hit it. Face, neck, arms, upper torso and some on upper thighs. Erythema still present on face, neck and upper chest. I have a little temporary relief with lidocaine based topicals and anti inflammatories. Skin continues to atrophy and now shows marked deterioration and scarring. Dermatology consultations refer to skin corrosion consistent with a thermal burn injury and talk about protracted recovery times, and sometimes permanent damage.
Eyes – Eyes are also very susceptible to heat damage. I had an ophthalmology check a week after the injury. I am scheduled for a follow up 6 months after injury to check for cataract formation.
Testes – After the burn there was dramatic impairment of sexual function and seminal fluid change. I was made aware that testicular tissue is very susceptible to heat related damage due to a lack of ability in this area to disperse heat (much like the eyes). Since I did suffer from some burning on my upper inner thighs, it’s possible there was heat build-up in this area. I’m working with an Urologist to determine the extent of damage and again hope it’s not permanent. Testosterone production and semen analysis is ongoing and I’ve been put on Clomid to see if function can be restored.
You can follow my story on my blog site at mriburn.com
What bothers me the most about this post is the fact the technician didnt know what happened, same thing happened to my friend and she said she felt like her arm was going to melt...same explanation from tech..IDK...or coverup. Im sorry you had to experiencel that as i saw the look on my friebds face, and knew it had to be terrible.
i just had both MRI and MRA, and experienced the same sensation. MRI was completed first. Before MRA, right after a technician started injecting a contrast through my left arm I felt that my left arm started burning from the point of entry all the way down to my fingers. It happened twice. When I asked technician, she said that it happened first time in her practice. One day later my left arm had a huge area of swelling up and below elbow. Hope it will dis.appear soon
So I just had a MRI done at St Luke's Hospital Houston Texas they told me you would feel a little warm and this is not my first MRI but I noticed about 10 minutes into the procedure it felt like I was just standing in the Sun are beside a welding machine with no shirt. I took my shirt off the next morning because I felt burnt and I'm burnt on my arms my upper chest and my stomach like I've just been standing out in the sun for a few hours with no sunscreen and it's very painful just have never heard of this before is it common thanks for any input and maybe any advice that I could get.
I Had an MRA of my head and neck without contrast yesterday. Last night my eyes and head hurt so terribly bad. My chest and face is hot to touch and feels like a bad sunburn. I wondered if it was from the MRA. No where else on my body is red or burning.
I would like to know that too! I had an MRI few days ago and since than my chest, back and neck are burning like a really bad sunburn. It feels like I am burning from inside. I don’t know what to do. Of course, doctors say it is not from the MRI even though it is obvious that the MRI caused this.
I had 3 MRIs done without contrast (cervical, thoracic, and lumbar) the first two were fine no problems. However during 2-5 minutes towards the end of the lumbar one, I noticed a burning sensation on my left abdomen followed by a little stomach pain. Since I had 2 minutes left I just let it go and asked the tech after words. Told him I have pain and burning in my abdomen region. He said he didn’t know/ never heard of this and said I was probably hungry.
It’s now day 3 and I still have the pain. I do not have any red skin in the area but it is sensitive to touch. It’s a burning sensation and sometimes a sharp pain when I move. I get nauseous intermittently and have gas and cramps.
I have the same burning sensation in my scalp after having an MRI of my brain. I would appreciate anyone responding with any information on how they got the sensation to go away, whether it was treatment or just time.
I went in to the ER with symptoms that the Dr was concerned might indicate a stroke. The scan thankfully did not indicate a stroke but now this burning sensation is worse than my initial symptoms. Its unbearable. My Dr thought it might be related to an allergic reaction to the contrast and prescribed a steroid which helped, but the sensation came back soon after I had used the couple doses prescribed. This sensation started the night after I had the MRI and my scalp looks normal. I can't stay on a steroid and no one seems to have any answers. Radiology says it can't be them, which it obviously is a result of the MRI. I pray someone has any information that can help me and others that have had this happen.
I had an MRI of my abdomen today. It caused pain in my back and head and a burning sensation on my stomach. Everything I read says that MRIs cause no pain or burning. It was awful and terrifying.
Content on HealthUnlocked does not replace the relationship between you and doctors or other healthcare professionals nor the advice you receive from them.
Never delay seeking advice or dialling emergency services because of something that you have read on HealthUnlocked.
No new lesions or activity on MRI!
Burning tongue
Does anyone know what is going on with the gadolinium (dye) that is given to you during an MRI?
Dart like sensations to my scalp
