Tingling feet during an MRI scan, anyone else experienced this?

[petlover1989]

Hi All,

I recently had an MRI of my lumbar spine. I've had 3 before and felt absolutely nothing during those. This time, I felt a tingling sensation in my feet, legs and hands, (mostly feet).

It subsided after the scan. However, as I have a sciatic nerve sensitivity problem it has caused a flare up.

I've done some research online and found that the switching of the magnetic fields can produce a current which activates the peripheral nervous system (possibly the cause of the tingling).

Has anyone else experienced a similar feeling during an MRI scan?

Thank

[rabbits65]

not during an mri scan but I have sciatica nerve trouble and I get tingling feet sometimes which I understand is called peripheral neuropathy , it’s certainly not nice.

[cyberbarn]

Could it have been caused by position? As Rabbits says nerves can be affected at spinal level causing tingling in the hands and feet.

This peer reviewed paper also mentions that the MRI machine can induce peripheral nerve stimulation.

jospt.org/doi/full/10.2519/...

If that was what you were experiencing this time but not previous times, it could be because the newer MRI machines are stronger.

And it could actually be a combination, peripheral nerve problems caused by the position you were in during the scan, and a stronger scanner. So the initial tingling would resolve, but the positioning could have caused a flare.

I hope it passes quickly and that the results of the scan are useful.

[groodle]

yes when I had my last scan I felt tingling on my face including my eyelids it tingled my eyelashes one by one and other parts of my face

[Hidden]

I had an MRI for spine issues and I don't recall having those sensations. I will point out that laying on your back on that hard tab;e is not the best position for people with sciatica issues.