MRI

You can book your appointment via our centralised MRI Booking Centre, after being referred by your specialist/physician.

You can contact them on:
(021 276 1253)
mribookings@morton.co.za
Please note: This number is only available for MRI bookings.

Our staff will inform you of specific preparations or lab work that might be required for your MRI procedure.

When making your appointment, tell our receptionists about:
• Any health problems (for example: pacemaker, aneurysm clip, Neuro-stimulators and Cochlear implants)
• Recent surgeries
• Allergies
• An aversion to enclosed spaces
To ensure you are relaxed and comfortable during the exam our radiologist will administer a mild sedative prior to the exam. Roughly 1 in 20 patients will require medication, so don’t feel disconcerted to ask.
You will, however, be instructed not to eat or drink anything from midnight the night before the exam (or 6 hours before your procedure). If you disregard this directive, we would need to reschedule your exam.
• Any possibility that you might be pregnant.
MRI exams have been successfully performed on pregnant women without any ill effects on them or their unborn baby for more than 35 years. However, because the unborn baby will be in a strong magnetic field, we recommend that you should not have this exam in the first three to four months of pregnancy unless the potential benefit from the MRI exam is assumed to outweigh the potential risks. Pregnant women should also not receive injections of gadolinium contrast material except when absolutely necessary for medical treatment.

Dental fillings are usually not affected by the magnetic field, but may distort images of the facial area or brain. So the radiologist should be aware of them.

You will be asked to remove anything that might degrade the quality of the MRI images.

Please wear loose, comfortable clothing and leave your jewellery (for example: earrings and watches) at home.
You may be asked to wear a gown.

On the day of the exam, you will also complete a patient questionnaire and consent form reconfirming the details you have already submitted when making your booking.

Please note that certain MRI procedures require special preparations (for example: blood test). Our friendly booking staff will, however, inform you of the specific preparations for your procedure. If you would like to know more about your procedure, please visit the specific procedure page.

PLEASE NOTE: 

The MRI room is kept cold (17 – 21° C ) to ensure an appropriate working environment for the machine’s magnets.

Under normal circumstance, our MRI radiographer will provide the patient with a blanket, however, following the recent outbreak of Covid-19 and the hygiene protocol associated with it, we will not be providing patients with blankets when undergoing a MRI scan at any of our departments. We, therefore, encourage patients to bring warmer clothes (for example cotton lounge wear or winter pajamas) for the exam. Depending on the type of MRI study you might be required to wear the provided medical gown.

Note the clothing should have no jewellery, zippers or wiring as this will affect the overall image quality.

After the MRI scan
If you have received a sedative, you will not be allowed (by law) to drive or operate any heavy machinery after the exam. Please arrange for someone to pick you up or wait for you in our reception area.

Digital images and reports will be available to your referring doctor once our expert radiologists have completed their diagnosis.