Feeling tired after MRI is common, especially after receiving contrast dye. Other potential side effects include:
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Flu-like symptoms
Contrast dye is a liquid substance used in MRI and angiography examinations. It appears bright white on the images, allowing doctors to distinguish it from surrounding tissues.
Contrast dye acts as a ‘changing agent’ within the body during an MRI. It alters the relaxation time of the nuclei of atoms within the body, resulting in a change in the appearance of the images. This allows doctors to:
- Highlight blood vessels: Crucial for diagnosing conditions affecting blood flow.
- Visualize areas with increased blood flow: Helping to identify areas of inflammation or infection.
- Detect internal bleeding: By identifying areas of blood accumulation within the body.
What Is an MRI?
An MRI scan creates detailed images of your body’s structures by using a powerful magnetic field and radio waves. Contrast MRIs, however, can provide doctors with a more detailed view if necessary. The MRI begins with an intravenous injection of contrast agent to improve the quality of the image.
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) may be better known due to its global ubiquity and improvements in medical imaging technology. Magnetic fields surround your body in an MRI machine, which is a big, cylindrical device. To diagnose and prognosis your condition, it takes incredibly precise images of your soft tissues.
The importance of contrast in an MRI may be unknown to you. A type of MRI contrast dye called gadolinium-based contrast agents (GBCAs) may be used to enhance the clarity and interpretability of MRI images, making them different from CT scans and X-rays.
MRI with and without contrast is available at Dallas Imaging’s ER. Find out more about this technology below.
Is An MRI With Necessary For Everyone?
A contrast-enhanced MRI scan must be authorized by your doctor. Your arm will be injected with gadolinium-based dye during the treatment. As a result of the contrast medium’s ability to improve the image quality, radiologists can diagnose more accurately and more accurately.
There is no permanent discoloration of your internal organs caused by contrast medium dye. It rather modifies your body’s perception and interaction with imaging modalities temporarily. Depending on the method of imaging, the contrast substance may be absorbed by the body or excreted in the urine.
Contrast materials are not required for every MRI. The type of MRI scan you receive will be determined by your doctor, based on your health and medical history. MRIs with contrast and without contrast are both valuable diagnostic tools. When your doctor needs to evaluate a specific area of your body that is causing discomfort, he or she will often order the contrast agent.
When contrast is applied to your veins, the radiologist can see more of the following:
- Inflammation of growths
- An organ’s blood supply
- Structures of the blood vessels
The physician doesn’t usually prescribe a contrast MRI unless they consider it necessary, even though it provides useful information. When it comes to back discomfort, sports injuries, and work-related injuries, intravenous contrast tests are typically not needed.
Fatigue After MRI With Contrast: 5 Proven Reasons
It is common for people to feel disoriented after having an MRI, and there are several reasons for this. You may have a psychological issue in some cases, or a physical one in others, depending on how many hours you have spent lying in a quiet position! An unfamiliar feeling can sometimes be caused by sedatives, or it can be caused by your first MRI.
Long-Term Fasting Before MRI Scan
Before having an MRI, did your doctor advise you to abstain from eating for six hours? In the letter, did he give you instructions on how to proceed? You might want to eat something to feel better and more relaxed after your MRI! This could be another reason for your strange post-MRI feelings!
It is typical of every pathological exam to fast for several hours to ensure that the test is accurate to an extreme degree. There is nothing wrong with you! A health assessment can provide you with an accurate assessment of your current health if you listen to someone who recommends it.
Furthermore, your stomach must likely have been grumbling after such a long and demanding exam. A feeling of strangeness and anxiety is always accompanied by hunger!
A Long Wait For Pee Release
MRI scanners require you to urinate even if you are unable to hold it in. Drink a lot of clear liquids before your MRI scan as part of your preparation!
That is a rather big issue! If you need to use the restroom midway during the test, you cannot avoid consuming excessive amounts of fluids. It’s only a matter of waiting! The strange symptoms you experienced after the MRI might be related to it. Even after the urine has been flushed out, holding pee for a long time can cause abdominal pain.
A Sedative After Contrast Dyeing
The image clarity of the MRI scan can sometimes be improved by giving you contrast dye. Additionally, sedatives may occasionally be administered during an MRI to alleviate symptoms of claustrophobia.
In both scenarios, there is a risk of adverse consequences. This may be what is causing your unease or strange feelings following the MRI scan. You may also experience chills, fever, headaches, nausea, and body aches in addition to feeling fatigued and lightheaded. It is also possible to experience allergic reactions, sore throats, redness around the intervention site, etc.
You may need to prepare to overcome the negative effects shortly since this strangeness is similar to a red alarm. Do you think you’re ready?
90-minute Enclosed Tube Staycation
You might be experiencing strange post-scan feelings because of the prolonged time you spent in the MRI machine! Even though an MRI usually takes 15 to 20 minutes, you can need to spend up to 90 minutes there depending on the imaging! You will have to put up with the cramped atmosphere for the duration!
There is no doubt about it! An MRI machine is long and narrow, shaped like a doughnut when closed, and rarely is it ever opened to let in fresh air. It is so hot and humid inside it feels like a dank, gloomy prison!
Maintain a constant state of awareness, remain motionless in one position, and pay attention to cues to change or relocate! Yes, it is tiring! There may be feelings of stress and anxiety during this period and long after the exam has ended trepidation and anticipation, and dread of being trapped.
It is possible to feel strange after a tense MRI scan even if you do not often suffer from claustrophobic episodes.
A Loud Noise From The MRI Machine
An MRI scan is indeed noisy, even though your doctor will rarely tell you this. If you lay inside the MRI machine all the time, there would be a scratchy noise. What is the reason and how?
The loud noise is caused by the coils on the MRI machine expanding when current flows through them. The sound is like a jackhammer, with bangs and clanks one after the other. It can see how people will be irritated by the sound long after the MRI is over.
Additionally, There are moments when the sound is as loud as 130 dB. The strange feelings you experienced after your MRI could be due to this. You feel strange whenever you hear those awful creaking noises as if you won’t ever be able to forget them!
Is it Possible to Feel Fatigued After an MRI With Contrast?
The most common question patients ask is this one. Contrast-enhanced CT scans may make you feel lightheaded. Sleepiness and disorientation have occasionally been reported by patients. Weariness does not appear to be associated with contrast dye in medical studies. There are very few documented adverse effects associated with any of the aforementioned dyes.
These negative consequences may be caused by their underlying medical conditions. Some publications describe hyperthyroidism, color sensitivity reactions, and nephropathy caused by contrast dye allergy.
Those with myasthenia gravis are also at a significant risk of disease exacerbation based on the clinical evidence. Additionally, patients may experience anaphylactic shock. There is a possibility that this will occur, but it is not likely.
An infusion of dye in the rectal or oral cavity may cause this reaction. The premedication treatment will be determined by your physician based on your physical condition. Antibiotics and other prescriptions should be stopped 48 hours in advance.
Preparation, MRI, and Post-MRI
The preparation of an MRI may be relatively straightforward. Before your session, you can consume food, liquids, and medications as usual. If you have any jewelry or body piercings, remove them before your scan. You should wear comfortable clothing that fits loosely, ideally without metal fasteners like buttons, zippers, and underwire bras. You should wear comfortable clothing that fits loosely, ideally without metal fasteners like buttons, zippers, and underwire bras. MRI machines can heat tiny metal fragments, which may cause harm if you wear cosmetics or deodorant before your test.
Please leave your purse and any valuables in a locked locker before arriving at your appointment, including your wallet, cell phone, keys, etc. A large magnet on the MRI equipment can erase credit cards, so it’s crucial to leave them behind. As part of the MRI machine, a metal bed slides into a donut-shaped magnetic tube. The aperture of this tube is about 60 centimeters. This size might surprise you, but the radio frequency must be able to generate magnetic waves that will generate images of your interior with a small tube.
We offer alternative devices that are more spacious and comfortable if you are concerned about the tube’s size. Furthermore, we have MRI machines with wide-bore openings, which are 10 cm wider than standard MRI openings. MRI machines are open, so only the area being scanned is enclosed.
After the MRI Test
It’s just a matter of getting back into your clothes, getting your belongings, and continuing your day as usual. As a result of the test, you are not limited in what you can accomplish. Once your scan is complete, you may depart. If you were given a sedative, you would need a driver to take you home. An MRI scan has no negative side effects. The intense anxiety associated with MRI scans can result in fatigue for some people afterward. MRI appointments, travel to appointments, and waiting for results can cause fatigue. If you experience nausea or itching at the injection site after the contrast injection, please notify your doctor.
How Long Does An MRI Take?
Since MRI images can be captured in high-quality, precise detail of a variety of body locations, your MRI consultation may last for up to two hours. It should take between 15 and 90 minutes to complete the scan. Due to the time required to perform your appointment, it will probably take 1.5 to 2 hours to change into new clothes and review your medical history. If you consider MRI scans as investments in your health and well-being, you will find they are well worth the additional time and cost.
The duration may vary depending on the scanned object, as we have already established. A typical scan takes the following amount of time:
- Full body MRI: An hour to 1.5 hours
- Head MRI: 30 to 60 minutes
- MRI of the spine: 30 to 2 hours
- MRI of the back: 30 to 1 hour
- Brain MRI: between 30 and 2 hours
A majority of the time, MRI appointments are beyond your control. Maintain extreme stillness during your scans and arrive on time for your appointment to expedite the process. Emerging technologies may speed up MRI procedures. ER of Dallas is delighted to remain at the forefront of emerging technology as we continue to develop these new MRI machines.
MRI Contrast Side Effects
A lot of lying down in a small area might lead to fatigue, disorientation, and backaches, all of which can result from MRI side effects. In the case of any MRI contrast agent, there is a possibility of more severe side effects developing. A metal object, which may be inside the body, can be accidentally pushed by an MRI machine in rare cases. It is very uncommon for this side effect to occur since strict safety measures are in place to prevent this type of incident.
Magnetic resonance imaging causes side effects that appear to be caused by the process but are caused by prolonged motionlessness. Some patients have reported dizziness and backaches after lying still for an hour or more on a hard surface. A typical source of fatigue following an MRI is stress from taking the images, which is more demanding than is apparent during the procedure. It is common for MRIs to cause headaches, particularly in those with migraines, and they are frequently caused by the loud noises heard during an MRI.
What Causes Dizziness After MRIs?
It is common for MRIs to cause dizziness as an adverse reaction. Several factors might contribute to the condition, including the scan’s powerful magnetic field, as already indicated. Those with vertigo diagnoses experience the same effect when exposed to magnets. A patient’s dizziness worsens if he or she gets up from the table too soon. It is also necessary for the brain to get used to being outside of the machine once again. There is no long-term impact on the dizziness since it is transient. The dizziness may leave some individuals fatigued, but nothing that can’t be remedied by a good night’s sleep.
It Is Possible For an MRI Scan to Cause a Headache
Following an MRI scan, some individuals may experience headaches. There are certain elements involved, even though the exact reason is unknown.
Patients who experience headaches after undergoing the scan may be more affected by their environment than by their treatment. A moving table keeps the patient motionless as you are brought into the MRI scanner. As a result of its close-in design and compact design, the machine could make one feel cramped. Following the start of the scan, you should remain as still as possible. Consequently, worrying about a potential medical condition and enduring any discomfort you may feel are surefire ways to end up with a headache.
You may also feel different after the scan depending on how long it took. Scan times can vary from 15 minutes to 90 minutes depending on the body part being scanned and the intended use of the scan. After spending a lot of time lying on the back, a patient may experience a headache when they first stand up.
Final Thoughts
Have you been reading the blog for a while? I must say that’s all for today. You may feel strange after an MRI scan for a variety of reasons; the key is to figure out which applies to you.
ER of Dallas is dedicated to providing our patients with exceptional hospitality and knowledge as well as timely, courteous, and prompt service.
Whenever you visit one of our imaging centers, you can expect a friendly and enjoyable experience. You can count on us to use the most up-to-date, cutting-edge imaging equipment, so your results are always accurate and dependable.
A convenient time and date will be selected for your MRI with contrast scan appointment. Please feel free to contact us if you need assistance. You can find Dallas Emergency Room in the comfort of your own home. MRI scans with contrast can be scheduled at any nearby center.
