Safety and reliability of the insertable Reveal XT recorder in patients undergoing 3 Tesla brain magnetic resonance imaging.

Background: Up to now there is little evidence about the safety and reliability of insertable cardiac monitors (ICMs) in patients undergoing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

Objective: The purpose of this prospective single-center study (MACPAF; clinicaltrials.govNCT01061931), which we are currently performing, was to evaluate these issues for the ICM Reveal XT at a 3 Tesla MRI scanner in patients undergoing serial brain MRI.

Methods: We present an interim analysis including 62 brain MRI examinations in 24 patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation bearing the Reveal XT. All patients were interviewed for potential ICM-associated clinical symptoms during and after MRI examination. According to the study protocol, data from the Reveal XT were transmitted before and after the MRI examination.

Results: All patients were clinically asymptomatic during the MRI procedure. Moreover, the reliability (ability to detect signals, battery status) of the Reveal XT was unaffected, except for one MRI-induced artifact that was recorded by the ICM, mimicking a narrow complex tachycardia, as similarly recorded in a further study patient bearing the forerunner ICM Reveal DX. No loss of ICM data was observed after the MRI examination.

Conclusions: The 3 Tesla brain MRI scanning is safe for patients bearing the ICM Reveal XT and does not alloy reliability of the Reveal XT itself. MRI-induced artifacts occur rarely but have to be taken into account.