#Middlebury #Health
DEAR DR. ROACH: Can you please explain how an MRI machine affects the pigment in a tattoo? My friend’s MRI procedure was stopped because she was experiencing a burning sensation at her lower eyelids, which had previously been tattooed with black ink. Does this happen only with black ink? Which colors are safer? – J.H.
ANSWER: Reactions between the ink in tattoos and MRI scanners are well-documented in the literature. Some inks – mostly black, red and brown – are made with iron or titanium oxides. Only 1.5 percent of people with tattoos have reported bad experiences in MRI machines.
Iron and titanium oxides conduct electricity, and the strong magnetic field in an MRI scanner can cause a current to travel between different tattoos or different portions of a tattoo – especially those with loops in the pattern. The electric current causes heat, and even can cause minor burns. Cold packs or ice placed on the area during MRI can minimize damage, but some MRI facilities will not perform an MRI on tattooed individuals, especially if the tattoo covers a large area.
If a magnet draws up the skin with a tattoo, then that area is at risk.
DEAR DR. ROACH: I recently was diagnosed with transient global amnesia. I had never heard of this. My primary care doctor sent me for further testing, which included an MRI and MRA with contrast, and a CT scan. All were normal. Can you elaborate on this condition? – M.T.M.
ANSWER: Transient global amnesia is a cause of retrograde amnesia (“retrograde” meaning you don’t remember things from the past, usually the past day to a month, but sometimes longer; “anterograde” means memory loss forward from the time of the event). Its cause is unknown, but it occurs more frequently in men and women over 50. Your doctor ordered the appropriate tests to make sure it wasn’t a transient ischemic attack or stroke. Epilepsy sometimes can look similar to TGA, so sometimes an EEG is obtained.
As scary as it sounds, TGA usually doesn’t happen again and doesn’t predict a higher risk of developing memory troubles, stroke or epilepsy in the future.
DEAR DR. ROACH: My wife has COPD. She is not coping very well. Her doctors are treating her with the standard medications. She has heard about an experimental treatment where they take her stem cells and make them into something that is inhaled. Have you heard about this treatment? Is it safe? Each treatment is $7,000. – J.W.
ANSWER: Stem cells are cells that can develop into many kinds of mature cells. In theory, they can grow and replace cells that have been damaged or destroyed due to a disease process. Stem cells hold great promise for many diseases, but there isn’t enough information for me to make a recommendation for stem cells in COPD, for either safety or effectiveness.
If you are going to look into it further, I would recommend doing so only as part of a clinical trial. You can find out about clinical trials at www.clinicaltrials.gov. I was able to find some trials on the site that are recruiting subjects. I also would recommend www.closerlookatstemcells.org to anyone considering stem cell treatment.
Dr. Roach regrets he is unable to answer individual letters, but he will incorporate them in the column whenever possible. Readers may email questions to ToYourGoodHealth@med.cornell.edu.
© 2019 North America Synd., Inc.
All Rights Reserved
You must be logged in to post a comment.