Does an MRI pull a piercing out?

Question

I have a very private hoop piercing. Well i for the life of me cant get the damn thing out right now. cant figure out how to undo it. I am having an MRI done on my knee. I have heard both that i am fine it wont pull it and that it will ... dont really wanted that of all things pulled

LOL in 8 mins time i have not been helped.. i am still getting the same thing... yes and no. I know what an MRI is. i have had them before. WILL IT PULL IT OUT?

Answer 1

I am a MRI technologist who is in direct contact with the magnet on a daily basis. I have 9 piercings in my ear, a tongue ring, a nipple ring and a belly ring. I have never had the magnet rip out any piercings. As a patient, if I were going to be scanning your head, I would ask that you remove any piercings in that direct area. They can cause an artifact on your images. If I were doing a MRI on your hand, I would ask you remove any rings or bracelets. You should always remove watches for any exam as the magnet will break the watch.

Here is what I found:

"Jewelry: Xrays, MRIs, and CT Scans
• Metal body jewelry will result in an opaque density on x-rays, but will not otherwise affect visibility on film
• Nipple piercings are unlikely to obstruct visibility of any pathology on thoracic x-rays if both frontal and lateral views are taken
•** Appropriate body jewelry is non-magnetic, and as such does not need to be removed for MRI procedures* unless it is located in the region being examined

http://www.safepiercing.org/troubleshoot...

"Appropriate metal body jewelry is not magnetic, and as such does not need to be removed for MRI procedures unless it is located in the region being examined. Gold jewelry is much more thermal-conductive than steel."

http://www.navel-rings.net/troubleshooti...

Answer 2

No, is nothing like an X-ray. An MRI is a Magnetic Resonance Imaging device; an X-ray is just a point source of radiation in a wavelength beyond the visible spectrum. An MRI puts a huge magnetic field over an area, aligning the hydrogen atoms and recieves the radio signal of the atoms snapping back.
To put the power in perspective, refrigerator magnet is 0.005 tesla in strength an MRI can be up to 2000 tesla. That is 400,000 times the strength of a refrigerator magnet.
Take the earrings out.

Answer 3

It will depend on the technologist that is doing the scan. You can explain your situation and they can decide whether they want to continue with the scan or not. It won't be pulled out and it shouldn't cause a problem because they'll do the scan of your knee in which they'll place a special detector on that part only.

And no an MRI is not exactly like an X-ray. X-rays use ionizing radiation and MRIs use magnetic field and the hydrogen atoms in your body, the are NOT the same thing.

Answer 4

It depends on how much metal is on it. It will definintely pull on the piercing, i'm not sure about pulling it out. If you have time, I suggest you go to the place where you got it put in for help getting it out. It could make life very uncomfortable in the MRI. I just had an abdominal MRI and I was in the machine for almost an hour.

Answer 5

If the piercing is in the area that is being scanned, it should be taken out because it will created an artifact on the image.
But it will NOT be pulled out!! Piercing jewelry is not magnetic!
And also if it was, it still will not get pulled out! This is movie/ TV myths!

Google body suspension!
You can literally hang the weight of 2 adult people from hooks in your skin, without it ripping,
So a 8mm jewelry/ ball that has hardly any weight is not going to fly/ rip out of your skin.
Second, Google magnetic finger implant..
Yes, now we are talking magnetic!
But still people have gone through MRI s.
And all they would feel was the magnet vibrating. So nothing abnormal!

!! So stop spreading TV myths and movie magic !!

Answer 6

It will and rip anything that it's hooked to. I know this because my husband had to have a series of MRI's after a stroke and I had to go into the MRI room with him and they were fanatical about me taking off all my metal and did tell me that it would get pulled right off of me if I didn't take it off. Gold and silver is OK, its just the metal that is attracted to a magnet. So if you piercing has been done with a gold hoop, you will be OK.

Answer 7

DO NOT take the chance! Even if it doesn't pull out, if there is ANY magnetic metal in the jewelry it may vibrate or heat enough to cause you injury. (People have had problems from some metallic inks in tattoos, in fact. THis is rarely what is used by reputable artists, but amateurs use all sort of junk as ink.)

Go back to the piercer (or any good studio) to have it removed or tell your doctor and/or MRI personnel. Believe me, they have handled this before. Face it, you do not want jewelry that cannot be removed anyway. If it's corroding, it could cause problems on its own.

Answer 8

It's best to ask the MRI technitian, or, as someone else suggested, go back to your piercer and ask them to loosen it enough so that you can take it out on the day of your MRI. I accidentally left my navel bar in (just forgot I even had it) at the beginning of a CT scan. The tech saw it on her screen during her initial shots and had me remove it before she'd fnish the CT.

However, if that part of your body isn't going to be in the machine, you shouldn't have a problem. I.E. My CTs are always of my mid/lower body, so I can have metal on my upper body without any problem because the field stops just below my chest.

Answer 9

All metalic items are to be removed before having an MRI done, it interferes will the magnetic imaging.

Answer 10

Take it out or you will no longer have the private area that your hoop is attached to. The MRI produces a magnetic field which produces the image. Very risky to keep it in.