Landmark MRI scan for newborn babies in Manchester hospital
- May 25, 2016
- EmmaArnold
New scanning equipment for newborn babies was used for the first time at a Manchester hospital.
Newborn baby Minnie was scanned using the equipment at Royal Oldham Hospital rather than being transferred to another hospital thanks to investment in neonatal monitoring.
MRI scans are used to assess the risk of any long term problems and is a more complex procedure with babies.
During the MRI scan, babies need extra care to protect their developing organs and so Minnie was given some 'mini-muff' ear protectors to ensure her ears weren't damaged by the loud noise of the scanner.
Hannah Bottomley, solicitor in clinical negligence at PotterReesDolan, said:
The new MRI scan at Royal Oldham is fantastic news for all those families who may need access to the specialist equipment to help determine any problems with newborns.
Here at PotterReesDolan, especially in the clinical negligence team, we are more than aware of the need to act quickly when things do go wrong with new born babies, and access to specialist equipment such as this will enable fast acting and hopefully help save lives.
Used on babies at a high risk of brain injury, the new MRI equipment will allow the hospital to diagnose any injury earlier.
The hospital was very impressed with the images obtained through the scan and Minnie's parents were pleased their baby wasn't taken to an unfamiliar hospital for the scan.