Woman goes inside MRI machine with loaded gun, gets shot in her buttock

Wisconsin

One of the first pieces of advice the doctors give patients before entering an MRI (magnetic resonance imagining) machine is to get rid of anything metal/ferrous on them. A patient in the US, however, did not pay heed to the advice and faced immediate repercussions. The 57-year-old woman patient in the midwestern state of Wisconsin received superficial wounds to her right buttock when she carried a concealed firearm inside the powerful magnetism of the MRI device. 

A detailed report by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) revealed that the incident took place earlier this year. As soon as the woman was glided into the MRI machine, the magnets activated the metal trigger of the handgun and the firearm was discharged. 

"It was reported that a patient was brought into the magnet room with a concealed ferrous handgun. In the process of entering the bore, the handgun was attracted to the magnet and fired a single round. The patient received a gunshot wound in the right buttock area," the FDA's record read.

After the gun discharge, the machine was stopped and a physician tended to the woman. The report by the physician described the "entry and exit holes as very small and superficial, only penetrating subcutaneous tissue". 

Later, as per protocol, the woman was shifted to a hospital where she informed she was okay and healing well. 

The FDA in its assessment said prior to the exam, the patient had undergone a standard screening procedure for ferrous objects, which includes weapons specifically. However, she answered no to all screening questions.

Watch | Gravitas: Unintentional Shootings in MRI Rooms: A Reflection of US Gun Culture?

Brazilian man dies

While the Wisconsin woman was lucky to come out alive, a man in Brazil did not have the same luck. In January, earlier this year, a man in Brazil died after forgetting to put his gun away which got similarly triggered inside the MRI machine.

Leandro Mathias de Novaes (40), the deceased, was a lawyer and vocal supporter of gun rights. He had taken his mother to Laboratorio Cura in Sao Paulo, Brazil for a checkup. Despite the hospital authorities instructing both to leave ferrous objects outside, Leandro, unbeknownst to anyone, went with the gun inside the MRI room. 

Also read | MRI machine triggers handgun, man dies in freak accident 

The gun which the Novaes was carrying under his clothes, went off, injuring him in the abdomen. He was rushed to Sao Luiz Morumbi Hospital where he passed away a few weeks later.

An MRI machine generates a magnetic field in order to image internal organs accurately. This magnetic field is strong enough to pull objects towards it or at least cause a magnetic effect on them.

(With inputs from agencies)