Tag Archives: Dental work and MRIs

A Maryland Bridge in an MRI

I have a Maryland Bridge and am in need of an MRI. Is this safe or do I need to make other arrangements?

Carl

Dear Carl,

Diagram of a Maryland Bridge

While the Maryland Bridge is generally a non-precious dental alloy, it will contain some nickel and/or cobalt. These are metal, but it is unlikely an MRI will dislodge it. The reason I say this is because these dental bridges, whether a Maryland Bridge or traditional dental bridge, are made to withstand biting forces. As a result, an MRI is unlikely to have enough force.

BUT…

You knew there had to be a but coming, didn’t you?

Dentists are not MRI technicians. Because of that, I tend to refer people their MRI technician who would have more extensive knowledge on this. There used to be a website where you could look up this information, but I just went to check it and the domain has expired. Hopefully, it will be back.

Dental Work You Should NOT Wear in an MRI

Any removable dental work, such as a partial denture or a dental flipper should not be worn during an MRI. They will dislodge. Because they are easily removable, it won’t put any hindrance on your medical procedure. You can simply remove these items when you remove any rings, etc. you have

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