I am kind of getting really fed up of my pain now and looking for a private MRI scan as the NHS rheumatology dept have rejected my referral for the second time despite being in constant agony daily. Every week it feels like a new area of pain has started and I am beginning to suspect a herniated or buldged disk in my lower back which currently feels absolutely awful as I can't sit OR stand now.
Does anyone have any suggestions of good private MRI companies/clinics in London/ Greater London that have provided accurate answers and reports for you at an affordable-ish price??
Would be very much appreciated as I have found so many with different types of reviews and can't decide on one.
Written by
Amywoodx
To view profiles and participate in discussions please or .
Sorry to hear this. Have you been seeing a rheumatology physio at hospital as often they can help with recommending a referral for a scan and sending an email or letter saying this to your rheumy? I can’t help sorry re clinics as I’m in Yorkshire. Hope you find a way. Good luck. 🙏🏻
They were very good. The imaging staff were very efficient and kind - I left with a CD with the images (which my rheumatology dept managed to lose!) and next day my physio sent me a copy of the radiologist’s report.
I had three areas scanned - my lumbar area was done first then a week later I had hip and pelvis done. Can’t remember the cost now - they were done just as we were coming out of lockdown, think it must have been about June last year, I think each area cost around £300. Turned out that what a GO had dismissed as ‘at your age it’s probably a touch of osteoarthritis’ was a fractured sacrum!
I know someone who has just paid £4000 for an ankle scan in leedsHave you thought about going privately to see a rheumatologist or orthopaedic consultant?
That is a ridiculous amount of money! I know I looked at a self referral place in Milton Keynes, their prices were similar to London and they were nothing like that. I also knew exactly how much I would be paying before I booked - no hidden charges.
Recently I had waited so long for an NHS Pan spine MRI I decided to have it done privately & the local private hospital quoted £1200……..even then there was a 3 week wait, & there was the consultant’s referral fee to add.
As luck would have it….the long awaited NHS appointment .turned up in the post ….on a Sunday.
MRI Scans + the report from reputable sources are really expensive these days.
Surely you’re not hinting that I didn’t have it done by ‘a reputable source’ AC?
Private hospitals are by their nature ridiculously expensive - this is a clinic in Wimpole Street - as far as I know all they only do x-rays and scans and mine were straightforward MRI scans - no dye involved.
No of course not F&N……I was just making the point that in all fields of medicine there are sources that offer tests ….supposedly the same as offered on the NHS or reputable private hospitals …but in fact they are not as advertised….…especially those that scan without a doctor’s referral.
Hi yes saw a priv rheumatologist who charged me 300 pounds to tell me he doesn't believe that my pain has a rheumatological cause due to my blood tests. While that was relieving to hear, I am still in a lot of pain daily, it's always my back but my shoulders, ribs and hips and now hurting again a lot too which makes me suspect rheumatological causes plus had an episode lasting 3 days where my wrists and fingers hurt too. He suggested an MRI but at the time I was unable to afford it and he told me to try physio first. Physio had one appointment with me and told me there's nothing they can do for me. Everyone just seems to keep fobbing me off really, even when payment is involved
personally I would be careful about proceeding with an MRI, without a clear suspicion on the cause. MRIs can be set up with different settings depending on what you’re suspecting. If it’s inflammatory arthritis you need a stir sequence mri which highlights inflammation. If it’s mechanical causes it would bd a T weighted mri which suppresses inflammation, so they can see structures better. They can also be very expensive, and you tend to get what you pay for, and for a detailed report you probably are looking at over £1000, which is a huge loss if you’ve ordered the wrong scan.
I think you’d be better off asking for a referral to a private rheumatologist, who also works on the nhs. Get hold of all blood test results, X-rays and mri results, even copies on cd to take with you. You can get these through access requests of your records. Then if you can persuade him you could potentially have a rheumatoid condition you could ask to be transferrred over to his nhs list. I know many who’ve taken this route. An initial appointment is £250-300. I’ll attach a graph explaining the different MRIs, which may help understanding which you need
Hi thank you for this. I'll make sure I ask what type of scanner is used etc. I had an initial appt with a private rheumatologist who told me he believes there is no rheumatological cause due to blood test results but suggested an mri, at the time i couldn't afford it and wasn't aware if he was doing NHS. I really should've asked but he told me to try physio first, who also didn't help at all. Physio also wouldn't refer me for an MRI either on the nhs and neither will my gp. Not sure how to contact the priv rheumatologist again without having to fork out another 300 and online I can't see anything about him being on the nhs.
You could look at the rheumatologists working at whatever hospital you attend, then look at a couple of private hospitals in your area and see who they have working for them and you’ll be able to see if any of them are employed in both places. Got a horrible feeling if you want to see him again you will have to pay again.
sorry your struggling. I think we’ve spoke before. My local team dismissed me as bloods were normal, which they would be as they had me on steroids. I had to see a rheumatologist 250 mile away, who requested via a forum that I ask gp to refer me to her. After loads of tests shd referred me to a colleague who worked for NASS the AS charity, who diagnosed me based on fusion on X-rays, then mri showed fused ribs. I now have lung and heart complications due to years of uncontrolled inflammation. My rheumy has no answer when I ask why he feels normal bloods rule out inflammation, when the charity quote 50% have normal results, and that despite my normal bloods I have so much fusion and damage to organs. Needless to say he can’t answer. It took me 5yr attending Rheumatologists to get my AS diagnosis. Keep pushing.
GPS aren’t allowed to order MRIs these days for back pain, unless there is a red flag symptom mentioned. You don’t say what your symptoms are, but weakness in the legs, altered sensation of bladder or bowels, numbness in the saddle region are a few. Inflammatory symptoms like alternating buttock pain, pain > 3 months worse with rest and morning stiffness, MRIs need to be ordered by the rheumy as they need a stir sequence mri. So if you have any concerning symptoms your gp should order an mri. Sending an email stating your concerns re feeling the need for an mri, can prompt a change in decision, as it’s documented. You can also say what you feel needs said, without being interrupted or trying to get past a receptionist. 🤗
yes sadly reputable ones are expensive, and often you get a very detailed report, compared to the nhs. I had my scan in Leeds, although I live in Kent, long story. The report was incredible, listing each vertebrae and what they found. They are a centre of excellence. My local radiologist literally just write,”active inflammation, suggesting active spondyloarthritis, with fusion at SI joint confirming AS”. The Leeds consultant also out my mri on screen and went through it. She showed me my C6/7 had slipped and calcified, and was starting to press on the cord. When my hands started tingling and burning, the local team insisted it’s carpal tunnel, despite neurophysio saying it’s not and it’s coming from my neck. However because my mri report never mentions the calcified disc, it can’t really be there. I’ve got the mri images, I was an orthopaedic nurse for over 30yrs, and I can see it. Quality of reporting with MRIs is so important. You get what you pay for unfortunately 🤗
Thats the thing - unless you have someone to refer you you have no idea of what you need scanned or what type of scan you need.
As it was I’d seen a hospital based GP in outpatients and he had suggested ‘sacroiliitis?’ Which was the best suggestion I had had for the pain I was in. However my scan results mentioned specifically that there was no sign of sacroiliitis (I had an SIF ) I assumed because they mentioned that there was no sign of sacroiliitis that my physio must have mentioned that was a possibility when he referred me - as it was we started with the lumbar region then moved down so I had three areas scanned altogether.
The trouble is people in great pain get absolutely desperate when they can’t get an appointment with a doctor or if they do they are fobbed off like I was. Also after paying for your initial consultation - consultants working out of private hospitals tend to want to do their own very expensive scans and blood tests. Unfortunately things are only going to get more difficult nowadays.
Yep it is getting difficult nowadays, it has been 3 months of constant pain now and the rheumatology centre on the nhs have just rejected my referral again. Today I woke up with pain upon breathing in which feels like a rib thing. At a loss tbh, can't afford private but nhs want nothing to do with it!
I’m sorry you are getting nowhere. It sounds as if you aren’t being seen by an endocrinologist. I don’t understand how some people seem to get so much attention while others really struggle.
Back in 2012 I was feeling really ill, I had felt I had something wrong for years, I knew it must be some sort of autoimmune condition, but I got nowhere. In the end I saw a lady GP who leaned back in her chair, looked at me like I was some sort of strange specimen under her microscope and said ‘I think you’re needing your holiday’. As it was a couple of months later - by which time I was on my knees - it turned out that I had Graves Disease. I had lost so much weight by then that even the receptionist commented on it when she brought the (different!) doctor’s coffee into the consultation room.
The ridiculous thing is I was overjoyed at finding that there was actually something wrong with me even though Graves’ disease is an awful condition and I was serously ill - all I could think of was that last someone believed me!
I do hope you can find the answer to your problem, constant pain is horrible but struggling to get someone to believe you is worse.
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.
Can anyone recommend good private health care?
Lumbar Spine MRI Results
Was it worth going private?
Private consultation 
Recommendation for private rheumatologist
