Proposed Hospital Building Code Calls for Specialized Ferromagnetic Detectors for MRI Safety

Leucadia, CA, November 15, 2008 --(PR.com)-- The Facility Guidelines Institute, which publishes the most often used building code for hospitals and health care providers in the U.S., has made the draft language of their next update available for public comment. The proposed new code - for the first time - calls for the use of ferromagnetic detection systems for pre-screening of MRI patients.

The extraordinary power of the magnets needed for MRI imaging has also drawn magnetic materials, that have been brought into the room with the scanner, with tremendous force. These accidents have resulted in serious injury, even fatalities. Ferromagnetic detectors, such as those offered by Mednovus, Inc., of Leucadia, CA, are intended to alarm on ferromagnetic materials to keep them out of MRI scanner rooms.

"MRI magnets in hospitals around the world are now commonly up to 60,000 times more powerful than the Earth's magnetic field. While magnetism does not have the health risks that X-ray radiation does, you can understand how immensely powerful magnets could have their own safety concerns," offered Tobias Gilk, President and MRI Safety Director of Mednovus. "It's long past time that we had basic building code direction to help protect both MRI patients and care-givers."

By integrating ferromagnetic detection with conventional clinical screenings, MRI imaging providers can help prevent magnetic materials from being brought into the scanner room, where they can become lethal projectiles.

Mednovus provides ferromagnetic detectors for MRI pre-screening that can either be integrated into the architecture of the suite, or can stand independently. The company's products, both their hand-held Target Scanner(TM) and the pass-through MRI Sentinel(R) portals, will likely be keys to compliance with the new building code.

"Having served as an architect specializing in imaging suite design for over 10 years, I know how important it is to have products - and the design support to go with them - for the architects, engineers and equipment planners who will be implementing this new part of the hospital code," said Gilk. "I'm so proud of what the Mednovus products are designed to do and for the opportunity to work with facilities and their designers to help strengthen their MRI safety."

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