A woman suffered a bullet to the butt after bringing a gun into an MRI scan.
The 57-year-old Wisconsinite suffered a single gunshot wound to the buttocks in June 2023 after the firearm she was carrying got too close to the Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) machine, the Daily Mail reported. The incident was reported to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Manufacturer and User Facility Device Experience (MAUDE) database one month later.
Woman Enters MRI Machine With a Gun, Gets Shot in Butt https://t.co/QHHqBvhx92 pic.twitter.com/tapRDIG4WC
— Gizmodo (@Gizmodo) December 6, 2023
The woman said she did not have any potentially dangerous objects on her when asked during the routine screening procedure, according to the outlet. She was also specially asked if she was carrying a gun, to which she falsely answered “no,” the Mail noted.
The MRI machine’s strong magnet may have pulled the gun’s trigger, the outlet reported. The woman suffered minor injuries, and the doctor who examined the bullet’s entry and exit holes said they were “small and superficial” and did not strike any bones or organs, according to the FDA report cited by the Mail.
Patients receiving MRI scans are instructed to leave anything that could attract a magnet outside of the room, including piercings, jewelry, cellphones and weapons, especially guns, according to the outlet. MRIs use strong magnets to produce a magnetic field and then pulses radio waves through the patient’s body to create images of its internal workings. (RELATED: Nurse Trapped In MRI In Bizarre Accident, Needs Emergency Surgery To Remove Embedded Screws)
MRI scans require patients to fully undress and wear a medical gown, the outlet noted. It remains unknown if the woman had removed her clothes prior to the gun going off, and how she concealed the weapon.