MRI and general anesthesia

[ZakareyasMama]

My son is 2 months old and we were told that he needs an MRI on his back to look at an internal cyst at the base of his spinal cord. The doctor (who spent about 5 seconds with us today) said he would be under anesthesia during the procedure. I am very afraid of putting such a small child under. Has anyone else had experience with an infant and anesthesia? How long will he be under for an MRI? What can I expect??

[herent]

My son had an MRI at 6 months for a cyst over his spine.  He's 3 now so I can't remember exactly how long, but probably no more than 45 minutes maybe less.  They brought him back to us in the recovery room and took about a half hour to wake up and then he was able to eat.  We had ours done at Children's Hospital in Seattle so his IV and stuff was done under anesthesia.  I'd say the most tramatic part about it was him not being able to eat for 6 hours prior.  If they're breastfed they don't have to go quite as long.  Don't worry mama after it's done you will think to yourself that wasn't so bad!

[ZakareyasMama]

The MRI is Monday and I'm trying to keep myself busy this weekend because I'm so worried! The pre-care people called today and said the MRI is scheduled for 8 am and we have to arrive at 6:30. He can have breastmilk until 3 am and can have "clear fluid" till 4:30 am. They also told me that they were scanning the entire spine AND brain, which the doctor never mentioned. When I asked how long it would take they said he's scheduled for 2-3 hours! So he will be going 8 to 9 hours without eating... I know he will be asleep for part of it, but I just feel so horrible. He's just so little and I'm so scared... I'll write an update after it's done.

herent, did your son need surgery? 

[KatWrangler]

How did it go?  My daughter was 4 1/2 months old when she had her first MRI.

[herent]

Sorry I didn't post sooner just saw this.  I hope everything went well.  Wow 2-3 hours thats a long time!  We just had my sons spine abdominal area done so didn't take as long it was a while ago though so can't quite remember how long.

As for your question if my son needed surgery............ well the cyst on his back was just that a cyst and we did have surgery to remove it, but...... because of that MRI my son is alive today because they found out he had cancer during that MRI.  During the MRI they found a large tumor in his abdomen attatched to his adrenal gland over his right kidney.  Which also was removed uneventfully and he needed no chemotherapy or further treatment and at 3 1/2 years old in April he was considered cancer free and cured.  I didn't really want to tell you in my first post because I didn't want to scare you, because his cyst didn't really have anything to do with his cancer, but because of that cyst we caught his cancer early wheeewww!  So yes we are seasoned pros at MRI's, CT scans, bones scans etc.

I really hope everything went well for you guys.  I'll be checking back for an update.

[ZakareyasMama]

Okay well first off, my son was fine during the anesthesia and didn't need a breathing tube so I'm very relieved about that!! The worst part was definitely keeping him from the breast for so long. It was made worse by the one hour delay. My poor baby was crying and screaming for about an hour and a half. I felt like I could have slapped somebody if that would have gotten it done faster.  The anesthesiologist blamed the delay on the first patient being late, which I found to be unacceptable. How can a hospital operate like that? Anyway, I let her and everybody else know how upsetting it was.

The MRI finally started at around 9:30. I was also very upset that we were not allowed to stay with him at least until he went to sleep. We had to give them our crying baby and walk away.  It was really heartbreaking. She said he would be given laughing gas and then an IV. They put the IV in the leg for babies. She said it was possible for him to have bruising at the site of the IV but he didn't. The MRI lasted about 2.5 hours. They did the entire spine and brain. She said they had to do the brain in case of surgery they need to have a map of the whole nervous system just in case.

Once it was over we went to post-op and He woke up pretty quickly. He was groggy but I put him to my breast and he started eating. By the time we got into the car he was back to normal. I watched to see if he was more clingy or seemed traumatized. It doesn't seem like it, which I'm so happy!!

It was a hard experience that was made worse by the hospital's delays and poor communication. This hospital is supposed to be in the top 10 in the nation, but I felt like it operated at a second-rate standard. We have the follow up w the surgeon tomorrow and I'm praying he doesn't need surgery! My heart really goes out to parents with seriously ill babies/kids. I hardly made it through this simple procedure... 

herent- Wow that's amazing how they found the cancer! I can't imagine how scared you must have felt but it's so wonderful he's healthy now!!

[herent]

Well good thing it's over with huh?  We have experienced delays just like that too with scans and surgery, my son cried and cried too because he was so hungry.  I hope your follow up goes well and no surgery is needed

[ZakareyasMama]

No surgery needed!!! 

The surgeon said he does have a very small cyst but that it seems like a "normal variance" and shouldn't interfere with anything. He said that IF it did we may have some problems with potty training and bladder control and that we should come back if we do see those symptoms, but again that it was unlikely. I feel so so so relieved! Thanks for sharing your experiences and words of support!