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Safety of MRI in patients with retained cardiac leads
Author(s) -
Nguyen Bach T.,
Bhusal Bhumi,
Rahsepar Amir Ali,
Fawcett Kate,
Lin Stella,
Marks Daniel S.,
Passman Rod,
Nieto Donny,
Niemzcura Richard,
Golestanirad Laleh
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
magnetic resonance in medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.696
H-Index - 225
eISSN - 1522-2594
pISSN - 0740-3194
DOI - 10.1002/mrm.29116
Subject(s) - imaging phantom , electric field , voltage , materials science , pulse (music) , nuclear medicine , nuclear magnetic resonance , biomedical engineering , physics , magnetic resonance imaging , medicine , radiology , quantum mechanics
Purpose To evaluate the safety of MRI in patients with fragmented retained leads (FRLs) through numerical simulation and phantom experiments. Methods Electromagnetic and thermal simulations were performed to determine the worst‐case RF heating of 10 patient‐derived FRL models during MRI at 1.5 T and 3 T and at imaging landmarks corresponding to head, chest, and abdomen. RF heating measurements were performed in phantoms implanted with reconstructed FRL models that produced highest heating in numerical simulations. The potential for unintended tissue stimulation was assessed through a conservative estimation of the electric field induced in the tissue due to gradient‐induced voltages developed along the length of FRLs. Results In simulations under conservative approach, RF exposure at B 1 + ≤ 2 µT generated cumulative equivalent minutes (CEM) 43 < 40 at all imaging landmarks at both 1.5 T and 3 T, indicating no thermal damage for acquisition times (TAs) < 10 min. In experiments, the maximum temperature rise when FRLs were positioned at the location of maximum electric field exposure was measured to be 2.4°C at 3 T and 2.1°C at 1.5 T. Electric fields induced in the tissue due to gradient‐induced voltages remained below the threshold for cardiac tissue stimulation in all cases. Conclusions Simulation and experimental results indicate that patients with FRLs can be scanned safely at both 1.5 T and 3 T with most clinical pulse sequences.