Improving Pediatric Patients’ Magnetic Resonance Imaging Experience With an In-Bore Solution: Design and Usability Study (Preprint)

BACKGROUND Annually, millions of children undergo a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examination. Hospitals increasingly aim to scan young children awake, as doing so benefits both patients and health care systems. To help hospitals reduce the need for anesthesia, we have developed solutions to prepare pediatric patients at home and in the hospital. OBJECTIVE The goal of our project was to design, develop, and test a solution that extends our preparation solutions by guiding and engaging children during their MRI examination. METHODS Pediatric In-bore was designed to deliver a familiar experience by reusing design elements from our preparation solutions. It offers child-friendly movies and auditory and visual guidance about examination progress and breath holding. To evaluate children’s liking and understanding of the solution, we conducted a usability study. Ten healthy children participated in a mock MRI examination featuring pediatric In-bore. We observed task compliance (ability to lie still and hold one’s breath) and conducted guided interviews to assess their experience and understanding of the guidance offered. RESULTS Participants (aged 5 to 10 years) were generally positive about pediatric In-bore. They liked the main character (Ollie the elephant) and her movie. Auditory and visual guidance were generally liked and understood. All but one participant successfully managed to lie still during the mock examination, and 6 (60%) out of 10 participants successfully held their breath. CONCLUSIONS Pediatric In-bore appears promising for engaging and guiding young children during awake MRI. It completes the Pediatric Coaching solution that now offers guidance throughout the MRI journey. Future research can expand on this work by evaluating the clinical impact of the Pediatric Coaching solution in a larger and more diverse sample of pediatric patients.