MRI breast scan prep requires a double check with the facility performing your study, but this list may apply to most sites.
1) You will be asked if you have any metal in your body prior to the mri scan. Inform the staff if you have a pacemaker, brain aneurysm clip, cardiac defibrillator, tens unit, neurostimulator, metal chips or fragments in your eye, or any other metal implants. Inform your doctor if you are pregnant before the MRI.
2) Another important MRI breast scan prep is that you do not drink caffeine prior to your scan.
3) Do not wear deodorant or lotions prior to your scan.
4) Remove all jewelry prior to your scan, including any clothing with metal. (This includes shoes.) Most of the better facilities will ask you to remove all your personal clothing and put on a patient gown for the best images.
5) If you are still having menstrual periods, before your MRI breast scan, let the facility know what day your menstrual cycle began and when you are in your cycle during your scan.
According to radiologists Dr. Bruce Porter, who has taught other radiologists about doing breast magnetic resonance imaging at his seminars for over ten years in the Seattle area, and Dr. Steven Harms, who invented the RODEO sequence and also the Aurora dedicated breast MRI system, the magic dates lie somewhere between menses days six and fourteen. In other words, knowing that your the start of a menstrual cycle being day one, the optimal days for your mri breast scan are day six through day fourteen. Some breast centers narrow the accepted dates they will scan during dates six through ten, and this is to reduce the frequency of false positives from the study.
If the patient is on HRT (hormone replacement therapy), then some sites request that the patient discontinue their medication for anywhere from three to six weeks prior to the mri to reduce the potential for false positives from the mri breast exam. If the urgency for the mri breast exam determines overlooking the HRT schedule due to urgency of findings, double check with your ordering physician. Many ordering doctors are unaware of the time-line for optimal studies surrounding the menstrual cycle and hormone replacement therapy, so double check with the site performing your study.
Sites on the ball with scheduling, will request you for scanning only during certain days (unless a new diagnostic finding has made the study urgent.) The key here is to communicate this with the radiologist reading the study. There are indicators suggesting that false positive results due to the timing of the menses cycle and the actual timing dates of acquisition of the mri scan.
Timing of your scan is important and relative to your menstrual cycle to reduce the possibility of false positives.
6) Do not eat a large meal prior to your breast mri study. You will be on your stomach for most of the exam, so it may be wise not to eat 4 hours prior to your study.
7) Another part of the MRI Breast scan prep, is to stay hydrated before your study. Your veins are easier to find for the necessary IV during your exam if you keep drinking water up to one hour before your exam.
Be sure to take your previous mammograms, any ultrasound studies, and the reports with you for the best in interpretation of your exam.
9) If you are on dialysis, or have renal problems of any kind, notify your ordering physician, the MRI staff and radiology center prior to your study. Try to get your recent lab results if possible to share with those doing your exam, especially the BUN and Creatinin. These levels are indicative of how your kidneys are functioning. Also if you are diabetic, try to let the staff know ahead of time. Most centers will rate your GFR (Glomerular Filtration Rate) prior to doing the study so you safe to get the contrast. You can do this yourself at the link HERE,
10) If you are pregnant, or think you might be, inform your physician and the MRI center staff prior to your study date. Depending upon which trimester you are carrying your baby in, this does not prohibit you from getting an MRI scan, but you may need to be informed about the physics of the study and sign a consent. There is no x-radiation or x-ray with the MRI study, but there is a slight “heating effect” that might occur called SAR, which stands for “specific absorption rate”. There is less SAR on a 1.5T scanner than there is on a 3.0T scanner.
10) You might want to review your study with the radiologist or your physician after the study, although it is normal to schedule this a day or even several days after your study.
