A survey of UK and Ireland MRI units highlights significant diversity in anaesthetic practice and raises concerns regarding the occupational safety of anaesthetists in these environments.
The lack of information about standards for anaesthetic practice in magnetic resonance imaging is of concern, since increasing requests are being made for this service, often in units not designed for the purpose. An overview of current practice was sought by conducting a postal survey of magnetic resonance units in the UK and Ireland. Replies were received from 100 units (79%), 46 of which had an anaesthetic service provided. A wide diversity of practice and opinion on the conduct of anaesthesia in this field was evident from the replies received. The survey highlighted particular areas of concern about the personal safety of anaesthetists within such units, including exposure to magnetic fields, noise and unscavenged anaesthetic gases. The evidence for such concerns is reviewed.
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McBrien et al. (2000) studied this question.
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