Scaphoid Fractures

[X-ray]

The strength of the magnetic field ranges from 0.5 to 3 Tesla in MRI units used for medical diagnosis. That is a strong magnet!
I doubt that a few coins would kill somebody but there have been deaths associated with small oxygen bottles flying into the bore of the magnet while there was a patient on the table.
A few years ago I attended a course on Magnetic Resonance Imaging and we were shown several examples of MRI accidents such as floor buffer machines and office chairs pulled into the bore. There were a few oxygen bottles too. They showed us how they got one of the oxygen bottles out: by using a Land Rover! They had to attach a rope to the bottle and tow it out. When the bottle was free of the bore of the machine, it remained suspended in mid-air and the rope was fully taut.
Then last year I conducted a few experiments here in London to see whether certain bullets had ferrous properties and therefore could possibly pose a hazard if the patient went for an MR scan. I had to make a special perspex and wood enclosure for the bullets and I ended up crawling into the bore with the test tool and bullets, and my digital camera. I had to hold that camera with both hands because the battery is ferrous. The magnet was so strong that it operated the zoom of the camera without me touching anything. When I got into the mouth of the bore the image turned into a blue snow, it was compressed vertically, and then the camera shut down and could not be powered back on for ten minutes!
I'll see if I can find pics of that.
Stronger magnets of the order of 10 Tesla to 20 Tesla have been used to levitate organic materials. One of the things they have successfully levitated is a small frog. So you can imagine how powerful that magnet is! (But they are't approved for medical use and the bore is very small)

Here is where they levitated the live frog:

http://www.hfml.ru.nl/froglev.html

[bloodline]

Yeah I've seen a frog (among other things) in a high tesla magnet while studying para and diamagnetics... The frog was tiny though, hardly bigger than your little finger nail.

[Karlos]

Hyperspeed wrote:
Ionising radiation is not good in any dose in my opinion.

Natural daylight is capable of ionizing plenty of materials...

[Karlos]

bloodline wrote:
Yeah I've seen a frog (among other things) in a high tesla magnet while studying para and diamagnetics... The frog was tiny though, hardly bigger than your little finger nail.

Liquid oxygen... Paramagnetic, (very) pale blue and great to throw on burning stuff :-D

[metalman]

X-ray wrote:

 last year I conducted a few experiments here in London to see whether certain bullets had ferrous properties and therefore could possibly pose a hazard if the patient went for an MR scan.

Nontoxic shot regulations apply to waterfowl, (ducks, geese, and swans) and coots. Nontoxic shot is defined as any shot type that does not cause sickness and death when ingested by migratory birds.

The shot types that are approved as nontoxic for waterfowl hunting in the U.S. are the following.

Approved shot type :    Composition by weight
===================    ==========================
bismuth-tin:            97% bismuth and 3% tin
iron (steel):           iron and carbon
iron-tungsten:          tungsten with ≥1% iron
iron-tungsten-nickel:   ≥1% iron, with tungsten, up to 40% nickel:
tungsten-bronze:        51.1% tungsten, 44.4%%copper, 3.9% tin, & 0.6% iron
tungsten-iron-copper-nickel: 40-76% tungsten, 10-37% iron, 9-16% copper, & 5-7% nickel
tungsten-matrix:       95.9% tungsten and 4.1% polymer
tungsten-polymer:      95.5% tungsten and 4.5% Nylon 6 or 11
tungsten-tin-iron:     tungsten and tin and ≥1% iron
tungsten-tin-bismuth:  tungsten, tin, and bismuth
tungsten-tin-iron-nickel: 65% tungsten, 21.8% tin, 10.4% iron, & 2.8% nickel
   

* Coatings of copper, nickel, tin, zinc, zinc chloride, and zinc chrome on approved nontoxic shot types also are approved.

[X-ray]

@ Metalman

That is great info, thanks! (Can I have a link or source too please). One of the things I intend to do with shotgun pellets is X-ray them to see if there is an appreciable density difference as seen radiologically, so we can exclude ferrous pellets. If you are a a shotgun owner or if you know someone who has samples of each of those pellet types (they would all have to be the same size) then let me know, because I would be interested in buying them. I would be willing to pay for the whole cartridge + your time + postage to UK. The only thing is you would have to slice the hull open and give me just the pellets because if there is any propellant together with the projectiles I am likely to have problems with customs.

[Karlos]

Can anybody reccomend any (preferably legal :lol:) analgesics that actually eliminate the constant nagging background ache from this type of injury that don't leave you with a complete mentallic void?

[X-ray]

@ Karlos

I don't think you can get that without a prescription, and even then you might take a hit in concentration.

[uncharted]

I was told various MRI horror stories by my teacher when I took a Medical Physics module during A Levels.  About 6 months later I had an MRI myself, I was surpised when I was told it was safe to keep my belt on (one horror story was about a guy who had is spine snapped by the force of his belt)

[Cass]

If you don`t have any liver-related problems, you may try an over-the counter product, Panadol. Else the doctor may prescribe you Xefo, for a short period of time.

Completely legal, and no mentallic void ;-)

[Floid]

Karlos wrote:
Can anybody reccomend any (preferably legal :lol:) analgesics that actually eliminate the constant nagging background ache from this type of injury that don't leave you with a complete mentallic void?

Hmm, seems cocodamol is codeine plus Tylenol (paracetamol/acetaminophen).  That'll certainly give you a nice buzz, but have you tried plain Ibuprofen or something else (Ketoprofen, naproxen) in the NSAID category?  You could technically use that in combination...

I usually find Advil works better than Tylenol for actual pain, and here in the US I've seen it handed it out (in the equivalent of 4 'extra strength' OTC tablets) after minor procedures because they're loathe to prescribe opiates and it can improve clotting.  Dunno if it's counterindicated for fractures, though.

[Karlos]

I got cocodamol because ibuprofen was doing absolutely nothing for the pain.

[Vincent]

Karlos wrote:
I got cocodamol because ibuprofen was doing absolutely nothing for the pain.

I find that to be the case more often with me aswell.  Although aren't they meant mainly as an anti inflamatory (or whatever it is)?

I used to be on co-codamol but that stopped working so I've moved on up to co-dydramol.  I wonder how long it'll be before that stops working.  Mind you, I'm only on the 20/500 at the mo, so I've a whole other level before having to change tabs :-)

Mind you, it took 5 years for the coco's to stop working so the co-dydies should last me a while yet.

I find the co's do mess with the attention span though.  I forgot what the Union Jack was called yesterday!  But maybe that's old age :lol:

[Karlos]

I've been avoiding taking anything unless it gets too painful.

However, having just accidentally tw*tted my bad arm getting out of the bath I've taken a good dose of coco and am waiting for what I call the "daytime tv" effect to kick in...

[Hyperspeed]

Have you considered acupuncture?

From what I can gather it's the physical equivalent to a paracetamol!

Apparently after a few sessions the pain is short circuited so it might be worth considering - the continued use of Ibuprofen has recently been linked to unpleasantries and I'm not at all convinced by this aspirin wonder-drug craze.

Alternative medecine seems to have many mysteries, they even sell copper wrist bands in high street chemists and now elasticated supports with built in magnets.

To get really far out you might want to douse the place to see where the lay lines are. As I've mentioned on another thread, laylines can reduce the body's ability to heal and even submarine builders are clued up on this science.

A sports physiotherapist might be able to help if you're in agony.

Sometimes small doses of steroids can speed up recovery but I don't think they should be used in great quantities or for long periods of time.

Also worth considering (I'm not a doctor) but if muscle is damaged then nuts and soya might help, cartillage may be aided by omega oils and glucosamine and bone with calcium chews.

I wonder also in this hot weather if keeping the painful area cool might be beneficial - any ideas if cold is better than hot for healing?

[cecilia]

Portable bone healing system


if there is inflamation, some cold (ice) is useful for about 20 minutes.

then some heat to get the blood flowing and helping to heal.

I usually take a shower where I can change the temp of the water as needed. and ice when I'm sitting around. you don;t want to just freeze your flesh. stop when the skin gets red. it's just to reduce the inflamation.