Face Burn Risk: FDA Warns Against Using Face Mask With Metals During MRI

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is reminding patients to not wear masks with metal parts during magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) after one patient reportedly got burns on the face.

The FDA on Monday released a reminder for patients to avoid wearing face masks with metals during an MRI exam, noting that the metal parts can get hot because of radiofrequency heating during the procedure and end up burning the patient.

These metal parts may include the nose wire or nose clips used to keep the masks in place and the "ultrafine" metal particles or antimicrobial coatings of the mask's fabric, which contain metals like silver.

As the news release explained, it recently received a report about one patient who got facial burns during the procedure. The said patient got a 3 Tesla MRI scan of the neck and ended up with burns on the face that are "consistent with the shape of the face mask."

The FDA does note that wearing a face mask during the COVID-19 pandemic is "appropriate." But since some metals in face masks are not always obvious, the agency advises patients and healthcare workers to first confirm that the face mask has no metal parts before performing the procedure. If it is unclear whether the face mask has metals, then it would be better to use an alternative one that can be confirmed to be metal-free.

"Burns from metal objects worn by a patient during an MRI exam are a known issue and patients should not wear any metal during an MRI," the FDA said. "Given the increased use of face masks during the COVID-19 pandemic, the FDA wants patients and health care providers to be aware of the potential risk of face burns related to the use of patient face masks containing metal during an MRI."

Anyone who experiences a problem during an MRI is advised to report the incident to the FDA.

MRI And Metals

To come up with a cross-section of the body, MRI uses a strong magnetic field and radio waves. Metal, whether worn or installed in the body as artificial body parts or electronic devices, may cause interference during the procedure.

According to Cedars-Sinai's explanation of the procedure, metal may interfere with the magnetic field used in creating an MRI image, therefore causing a safety hazard.

In 2013, for instance, researchers reported a case of a young patient who got second-degree burns during MRI because of the "invisible" silver-embedded microfibers in their undershirt.

As such, patients are always advised to remove any clothing with metal parts and to inform the MRI technician of any possible metals in the body including a pacemaker or artificial joints. And since some clothing can have undetectable metals in the fabric, as illustrated in the case of the young patient, some patients are being encouraged to instead wear hospital garments during the procedure.