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Outpatient Services
Open MRI Gives Patients More Freedom During Scan
Patients who need an MRI had few choices in the
past. In order to get a detailed look at an injury or
a potentially life-threatening internal condition,
physicians used traditional MRIs. These images, while
effective, are not always comfortable for the patient.
“Some patients have no problem being in a confined
space, especially when they know the images the
machine produces will help their physician diagnose
their problem,” says Dave Cato, Lee Memorial Health
System vice president of outpatient operations.
“However, there are patients who experience feelings
of claustrophobia when they enter a traditional MRI.”
Lee Memorial Health System is introducing the most
powerful high-field open MRI available for medical
diagnosis. The new system is in place at Outpatient
Radiology at Riverwalk. In addition to high-quality
images, the machine is open—allowing patients to
maintain eye contact with a friend or relative during
the entire process.
“We are proud to bring this to the community,” Dave
says. “It creates high-quality images and offers a
greater degree of comfort for our patients.”
MRI images are formed when signals are emitted
by body tissue after a radio frequency is pulsed in
the magnet. These signals are then processed by
computers and turned into clinical images.
Physicians use the information to detect changes in
many areas of the body, including the brain, vascular
system, breast, bones and major organs. The machine
translates tissue characteristics into different contrast
levels, allowing medical staff to locate any problems.
“This is the very latest technology,” says Mark
Williams, Lee Memorial Health System director of
outpatient imaging.
The new machine allows greater comfort and can
accommodate patients as large as 660 pounds. It also
lowers to wheelchair height—making it accessible to a
wide range of patients.
“For people who are anxious about the traditional
MRI, this is a viable alternative,” Mark says. “We
want to do everything we can to make our patients
comfortable during testing.”
Open MRI
Outpatient Radiology at Riverwalk
12600 Creekside Lane, Suite 1
Fort Myers, FL 33919
239-437-8008
