ASMIRT- MRI ACCREDITATION EXAM PRACTICE
QUESTIONS WITH VERIFIED SOLUTIONS NEW
MODIFIED CURRENTLY TESTED AND APPROVED
GRADED A+ 2026 NEW UPDATE
What are the FDA recommendations regarding SAR? --CORRECT ANSWER--
• Maximum SAR of 0.4 W/kg (whole body)
• 3.2 W/kg (head)
• 8.0 W/kg (in any one gram of tissue)
• RF exposure should be insufficient to produce a core temperature increase of 1
degree C
Why is patient heating a concern in MRI? --CORRECT ANSWER--• Heating
will also vary with the state of the patient's thermo-regulatory system, the
ambient temperature, the humidity and the air flow around the patient.
• The eye and the testes are particularly sensitive organs due to a low capacity
for heat dissipation.
• Excessive RF exposure and temperature increase can lead to an increase in
blood pressure and heart rate.
A SAR warning appears during a scan preventing you from continuing with an
examination unless factors are altered to a safe level, what can be changed in
order to achieve this? --CORRECT ANSWER--Factors which will reduce SAR
if required include:
Page 1 of 79
,• reducing the number of slices
• reducing the ETL
• increasing the TR
• GE rather than SE
• Use quadrature coils rather than linear coils for transmission
• Change to low SAR sequence design
How can patient burns be avoided? --CORRECT ANSWER--• use only
equipment tested to be MR compatible
• allow only MR trained staff to use the equipment
• check the integrity of the electrical insulation of all cables
• remove all unnecessary electrically conductive equipment from the bore
• keep electrically conductive equipment from directly contacting the patient
• keep electrically conductive equipment from forming large diameter
conductive loops
• position cables to avoid cross points
• position ECG cables to exit down the centre of the bore
• do not allow contact between the patient's skin and the magnet bore
Explain the deleterious effects of MRI on pregnant patients --CORRECT
ANSWER--There are no known biological effects of MRI on foetuses. MR
imaging may be used in pregnant women if other non-ionizing forms of
diagnostic imaging are inadequate or if the examination provides important
Page 2 of 79
,information that would otherwise require exposure to ionizing radiation (e.g.,
fluoroscopy, CT, etc.). Pregnant patients should be informed that, to date, there
has been no indication that the use of clinical MR imaging during pregnancy
has produced deleterious effects." This policy has been adopted by the
American College of Radiology and is considered to be the "standard of care"
with respect to the use of MRI procedures in pregnant patients. Importantly, this
information applies to MR systems operating up to and including 3-Tesla. (MR
Imaging Safety and Patient Management issued by the Safety Committee of the
Society for Magnetic Resonance Imaging) Pregnant patients should be reviewed
on a case by case basis to assess whether the risks outweigh the potential
benefits.
Can pregnant staff enter the MRI environment? --CORRECT ANSWER--No
increased incidence of spontaneous abortion has been demonstrated among MR
radiographers or nurses. The most common policy seems to be that pregnant
staff are allowed exposure to the static field (ie. to set patients up) but leave the
room during image acquisition to avoid exposure to RF and gradient fields.
Is contrast recommended in pregnant patients? --CORRECT ANSWER--
Contrast is not recommended during pregnancy. It has been shown to cross the
placenta.
What is a quench? --CORRECT ANSWER--Quenching the magnet results in a
large amount of helium gas boil off from liquid helium inside the magnet. One
litre of liquid helium expands to 760 litres of helium gas. During a quench, the
liquid helium is heated causing it to boil off. The quench pipe vents the resultant
gas outside. If the vapour pressure exceeds a predetermined value, the vent-
Page 3 of 79
, bursting disk on the vent pipe ruptures and ventilates the excess vapour. Some
may enter the scan room reducing oxygen levels. Helium gas displaces oxygen
and is hard to detect until it is too late. Asphyxia is possible due to low oxygen
levels. Another concern is the increase in pressure due to helium flooding the
scan room. It may become impossible to open an inward opening door due to
the pressure differential. In this case kick out panels should be used to reduce
the pressure differential and allow opening of the door. In the absence of these
panels the scan room window should be broken to allow access to the patient if
necessary.
When placed inside a magnetic field the hydrogen protons within the human
body will: --CORRECT ANSWER--Will attempt to align with the main
magnetic field (B0)
The hydrogen proton due to the presence of its single positively charged proton
can align in how many directions --CORRECT ANSWER--Two (parallel or
anti-parallel)
What determines whether a hydrogen proton will align parallel or antiparallel? -
-CORRECT ANSWER--A hydrogen proton will align parallel or antiparallel
dependent upon the relative energy of the individual proton and also the
strength of the main magnetic field. Protons with lower energy align parallel
and those with higher energy align antiparallel
Mild sensory effects due to static magnetic fields include: --CORRECT
ANSWER--• Vertigo
Page 4 of 79
QUESTIONS WITH VERIFIED SOLUTIONS NEW
MODIFIED CURRENTLY TESTED AND APPROVED
GRADED A+ 2026 NEW UPDATE
What are the FDA recommendations regarding SAR? --CORRECT ANSWER--
• Maximum SAR of 0.4 W/kg (whole body)
• 3.2 W/kg (head)
• 8.0 W/kg (in any one gram of tissue)
• RF exposure should be insufficient to produce a core temperature increase of 1
degree C
Why is patient heating a concern in MRI? --CORRECT ANSWER--• Heating
will also vary with the state of the patient's thermo-regulatory system, the
ambient temperature, the humidity and the air flow around the patient.
• The eye and the testes are particularly sensitive organs due to a low capacity
for heat dissipation.
• Excessive RF exposure and temperature increase can lead to an increase in
blood pressure and heart rate.
A SAR warning appears during a scan preventing you from continuing with an
examination unless factors are altered to a safe level, what can be changed in
order to achieve this? --CORRECT ANSWER--Factors which will reduce SAR
if required include:
Page 1 of 79
,• reducing the number of slices
• reducing the ETL
• increasing the TR
• GE rather than SE
• Use quadrature coils rather than linear coils for transmission
• Change to low SAR sequence design
How can patient burns be avoided? --CORRECT ANSWER--• use only
equipment tested to be MR compatible
• allow only MR trained staff to use the equipment
• check the integrity of the electrical insulation of all cables
• remove all unnecessary electrically conductive equipment from the bore
• keep electrically conductive equipment from directly contacting the patient
• keep electrically conductive equipment from forming large diameter
conductive loops
• position cables to avoid cross points
• position ECG cables to exit down the centre of the bore
• do not allow contact between the patient's skin and the magnet bore
Explain the deleterious effects of MRI on pregnant patients --CORRECT
ANSWER--There are no known biological effects of MRI on foetuses. MR
imaging may be used in pregnant women if other non-ionizing forms of
diagnostic imaging are inadequate or if the examination provides important
Page 2 of 79
,information that would otherwise require exposure to ionizing radiation (e.g.,
fluoroscopy, CT, etc.). Pregnant patients should be informed that, to date, there
has been no indication that the use of clinical MR imaging during pregnancy
has produced deleterious effects." This policy has been adopted by the
American College of Radiology and is considered to be the "standard of care"
with respect to the use of MRI procedures in pregnant patients. Importantly, this
information applies to MR systems operating up to and including 3-Tesla. (MR
Imaging Safety and Patient Management issued by the Safety Committee of the
Society for Magnetic Resonance Imaging) Pregnant patients should be reviewed
on a case by case basis to assess whether the risks outweigh the potential
benefits.
Can pregnant staff enter the MRI environment? --CORRECT ANSWER--No
increased incidence of spontaneous abortion has been demonstrated among MR
radiographers or nurses. The most common policy seems to be that pregnant
staff are allowed exposure to the static field (ie. to set patients up) but leave the
room during image acquisition to avoid exposure to RF and gradient fields.
Is contrast recommended in pregnant patients? --CORRECT ANSWER--
Contrast is not recommended during pregnancy. It has been shown to cross the
placenta.
What is a quench? --CORRECT ANSWER--Quenching the magnet results in a
large amount of helium gas boil off from liquid helium inside the magnet. One
litre of liquid helium expands to 760 litres of helium gas. During a quench, the
liquid helium is heated causing it to boil off. The quench pipe vents the resultant
gas outside. If the vapour pressure exceeds a predetermined value, the vent-
Page 3 of 79
, bursting disk on the vent pipe ruptures and ventilates the excess vapour. Some
may enter the scan room reducing oxygen levels. Helium gas displaces oxygen
and is hard to detect until it is too late. Asphyxia is possible due to low oxygen
levels. Another concern is the increase in pressure due to helium flooding the
scan room. It may become impossible to open an inward opening door due to
the pressure differential. In this case kick out panels should be used to reduce
the pressure differential and allow opening of the door. In the absence of these
panels the scan room window should be broken to allow access to the patient if
necessary.
When placed inside a magnetic field the hydrogen protons within the human
body will: --CORRECT ANSWER--Will attempt to align with the main
magnetic field (B0)
The hydrogen proton due to the presence of its single positively charged proton
can align in how many directions --CORRECT ANSWER--Two (parallel or
anti-parallel)
What determines whether a hydrogen proton will align parallel or antiparallel? -
-CORRECT ANSWER--A hydrogen proton will align parallel or antiparallel
dependent upon the relative energy of the individual proton and also the
strength of the main magnetic field. Protons with lower energy align parallel
and those with higher energy align antiparallel
Mild sensory effects due to static magnetic fields include: --CORRECT
ANSWER--• Vertigo
Page 4 of 79
