Subjective perception of safety in healthy individuals working with 7 T MRI scanners: a retrospective multicenter survey

Objective To retrospectively assess perception of safety of healthy individuals working with human 7 Tesla (T) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners. Materials and methods A total of 66 healthy individuals with a mean age of 31 ± 7 years participated in this retrospective multicentre survey study. Nonparametric correlation analysis was conducted to evaluate the relation between self-reported perception of safety and prevalence of sensory effects while working with 7 T MRI scanners for an average 47 months. Results The results indicated that 98.5 % of the study participants had a neutral or positive feeling about safety aspects at 7 T MRI scanners. 45.5 % reported that they feel very safe and none of the participants stated that they feel moderately or very unsafe while working with 7 T MRI scanners. Perception of safety was not affected by the number of hours per week spent in the vicinity of the 7 T MRI scanner or the duration of experience with 7 T MRI. More than 50 % of individuals experienced vertigo and metallic taste while working with 7 T MRI scanners. However, participants’ perceptions of safety were not affected by the prevalence of MR-related symptoms. Conclusions The overall data indicated an average perception of a moderately safe work environment. To our knowledge, this study delineates the first attempt to assess the subjective safety perception among 7 T MRI workers and suggests further investigations are indicated.