FARGO — Those who have patiently sat thought an MRI know it can be noisy and claustrophobic. These annoyances can even be a bit unsettling, especially for kids. Now, thanks to technology, fewer young people will need sedation. Now they can simply watch a movie while the machine does its thing.
Lyric Mauk is an active fifth grader who loves the outdoors, but a few weeks ago his parents, Alissa and Ryan Mauk were concerned when his headaches were not going away. After going to Sanford Health, an MRI was ordered.
"They had mentioned there might be a need for sedation, so we were prepared for that, and this option was presented and it worked very well," Ryan Mauk said.
Rather than sedating the 10-year-old for the brain scan, Sanford used special goggles that help make going into the machine less scary.
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The kids get to choose a movie which is streamed right into the goggles, distracting the child during the scan.
"I thought it was going to be long, but it wasn't that long," Lyric Mauk said. "It kind of looked like I was in a theater at first."
The need for sedation on pediatric cases is down 20% because of the goggles, which are used on kids ages five and older. Money raised from the annual Children's Miracle Network fundraisers helped purchase the goggles.
"If you think about watching children, if a child can sit and focus on a video at home, that child will do very well with the MRI goggles," explained Lorri Ferguson, a child life specialist with Sanford.
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