Mihaela Jekic1, Roger Dzwonczyk2, Yu Ding3, Subha V. Raman2, Orlando P. Simonetti4
1Biomedical Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA; 2The Ohio State University Medical Center, Columbus, OH, USA; 3Davis Heart and Lung Research Institute, Columbus, OH, USA; 4Internal Medicine and Radiology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA
Electrocardiogram (ECG) data acquired inside the MRI room may be distorted by magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) effects resulting from blood flow within the magnetic field. We quantified the MHD effects over a range of magnetic field values measured at various positions on the extended MRI table in order to determine a threshold at which MHD effects become significant. We found that at a field strength of <100 mT, the MHD effects are contained within approximately 5% of the baseline non-distorted ECG waveform. This finding is important for monitoring patients during and after stress testing inside the magnet room.