Use of a cervical spine collar during MR studies.

MR studies are highly sensitive to patient motion, which can, at the extreme, render them completely uninterpretable. In particular, MR exams of inherently poor signal, such as T2-weighted images or surface-coil images, suffer demonstrably. Many techniques have been attempted to minimize and to limit motion caused by the patient during these studies. While tape and velcro straps can restrict head motion, in some cases its application does not prove beneficial; moreover, a small patient may not provide the correct leverage for a velcro strap. Respiratory motion may be transferred to the head and spine as a consequence of the patient's interacting with the contour of the table. Attempts to completely restrict and secure the patient with pads or even vacuum cushions create an environment that increases the patient's anxiety and produces a higher risk that the exam will be terminated as a consequence of claustrophobia. We report here our favorable results with a soft cervical spine collar. These collars have several advantages: they come in different sizes for different-size patients; they are readily applied with a velcro