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You will be asked to lie on the scanner couch where you will be made as comfortable as possible. The position will vary depending on the part of the body that is being scanned. For example, for a scan of the neck you will be asked to lie with your neck in a specially shaped support.

You should tell the staff if you are not comfortable as you will need to keep very still during the scan which may take up to 45 minutes to complete. There will be an intercom in the scanning room or some other means of communicating with the staff during the scan. Once you are ready to start you will be moved into the scanner. Each set of pictures takes about five minutes and while the pictures are being taken you will hear a knocking sound. This noise means the scanner is collecting information to produce the pictures and therefore you must keep very still. If you move while the pictures are being taken they will be blurred and the scan may need to be repeated. Several sets of pictures may be taken during each examination and there will be a short pause between them. The scanner will go quiet between pictures; during this time the staff will be setting up ready to start the next set.

Will I need an injection?
When certain areas of the body are scanned, you may need an injection of a special dye known as a contrast agent which helps to see more detail on the pictures. If you need an injection it will be given into a vein in your arm by a radiologist or one of the radiographers trained to give injections. Sometimes several scans will be taken before the dye is injected and then further scans are taken after the injection.

Can anyone be with me during the scan?
As there are no harmful rays, a friend or relative can stay in the room with you during the scan. Anyone coming into the scan will also be asked questions
about pacemakers and metal objects in their body, and will be asked to remove all metallic objects such as watches and jewellery.