MRI scan – information for parents

MRI is a very safe procedure for most patients. However patients with heart pacemakers and certain other surgical implants, for example a cochlear implant, cannot be scanned. 

You will be asked to complete and sign a safety questionnaire for your child before their scan to make sure it is safe for them to be scanned.

You will also be asked to complete and sign a safety questionnaire for yourself in order to make sure it is safe for you to go into the MRI room with your child. 

If we need your child to do anything special in preparation for their scan we will send you information about this with your appointment letter.

Routinely your child can:

• eat and drink as normal and continue to take any medications he/she has been prescribed
• bring a CD to listen to during the scan or a favourite toy to take in with them (providing it does not contain metal)
• bring a DVD to watch as sometimes it is possible to watch a film during the scan.

Before entering the scan room:

• you will need to complete an MRI safety checklist for you and your child
• the radiographer (member of the radiology team trained to carry out scans) will explain the scan and answer any questions you have.

You and your child will need to empty your pockets and remove all loose metal objects like watches, keys and coins, as well as any credit cards or travel cards with magnetic strips, as the scanner can stop these from working. We provide lockers outside the scan room for these items.

If there are any zips or metal fastenings in the area we are going to scan, your child will need to change into a hospital gown as metal can spoil the pictures. 

We will ask your child to lie on the scanner bed and keep very still during the scan. Any movement can make the pictures blurred and the scan may have to be repeated.    

Once your child is positioned correctly, we will move them into the scanner – the part of your child's body that we are scanning must be in the centre of the machine. The scanner is a short tunnel. The radiographer will talk to your child during the scan to let them know what is happening and your child will be given a buzzer to press if they need to attract our attention during the scan.

When the scanner is working, it makes a loud banging noise. We will give you and your child headphones to wear, to reduce the noise.

The scan should be completely painless. Sometimes the scanner bed vibrates slightly due to the noise. This is quite normal and is nothing to worry about.

The most difficult part is keeping still. Please help us to make sure your child is as comfortable and as relaxed as possible before we start.

Most scans take between 20 and 40 minutes. 

If we are scanning certain areas of your child's body, we may need to give them an injection of contrast dye. This shows up on the scan and gives us more detailed pictures, particularly of your child's blood vessels.

If we know your child will definitely need an injection an additional information sheet will be included with the appointment letter.  

The MRI scan is quite noisy. When the scanner is working, it makes a loud banging noise. It's a bit like hearing roadworks or travelling on the underground. We will give you and your child headphones to wear, to reduce the noise. Your child will be able to listen to music through the headphones and sometimes watch a DVD during the scan. 

You can listen to some of the noises your child may hear during the MRI scan.  

MRI sounds one

MRI sounds two

MRI sounds three

MRI sounds four

As soon as the scan is finished, you can go home or back to the ward, if your child is staying in the hospital. Your child can eat and drink as normal and go back to their usual activities.

The pictures taken during the scan are carefully studied by the radiologist (doctor trained in reading MRI scans to diagnose and treat illnesses), who will produce a detailed report. This will be sent to the doctor who referred your child for the scan. The results should be available to you at your next clinic appointment.