Wearing a large metallic chain, an unauthorized 61-year-old man entered an MRI room in Westbury, N.Y., on July 16 and was drawn into the machine. He died the next day, according to local authorities.
A scan was in process when the man entered the room, according to the Nassau County Police Department. He was transported from Nassau Open MRI to a local hospital and listed in critical condition. On July 17, a hospital physician declared the patient dead at 2:36 p.m., according to police, who are investigating the matter.
MRI machines produce a strong magnetic field in the immediate vicinity of the scan. For example, a paper clip can reach speeds of up to 40 mph near a common MRI scanner, posing “a serious risk to the patient and anyone else in the scan room,” according to University of California San Francisco’s Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging.
Adverse events during MRI scans are very rare, according to the FDA. In February 2023, a similar case occurred in California when a nurse was moving a metal bed toward an MRI room and the bed was forcefully pulled toward the machine, pinning the nurse and injuring her pelvis, right leg and abdomen.
