Man dies after metal chain he was wearing pulled him into MRI machine at Nassau Open MRI in Westbury, police say

A man who was pulled into an MRI machine while wearing a large metallic chain around his neck has died, a day after he was critically injured in Westbury when he entered the testing room without authorization, according to the Nassau County Police Department.

The 61-year-old man died Thursday afternoon, the department wrote Friday in a news release.

The medical examiner hasn't formally identified the man, according to police spokesman Det. Lt. Scott Skrynecki. He referred an inquiry about the cause of death to the medical examiner, whose office didn't return a message seeking comment. An earlier police news release said only that the man had suffered "a medical episode." 

The man, who had gone into the room against the directions of staff, went into cardiac arrest, and the police could not interview him, Skrynecki said. 

The incident, which is being investigated by the police homicide squad, happened at about 4:30 p.m. Wednesday at Nassau Open MRI, inside a medical building at 1570 Old Country Rd.

Spencer Scott, a worker there, on Thursday told Newsday that he didn’t know the man’s connection, if any, to the clinic, but said he was not a patient.

MRI, which stands for magnetic resonance imaging, generates detailed images of the inside of the body, using strong magnets and radio waves. Patients are told to remove all metallic and electronic objects and are otherwise screened before an MRI scan. Room access is restricted.

Since MRI technology was invented more than four decades ago, the number of people worldwide who have died as a result of a projectile being drawn into the machine during a scan is in the single digits, including patients and accompanying family members, said Dr. Emanuel Kanal, founder of the American Board of Magnetic Resonance Safety and director of Magnetic Resonance Services at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.

Kanal said that next week is MRI Safety Week, which was inspired by the 2001 death of a 6-year-old patient who was fatally struck by an oxygen tank during an MRI scan in Westchester County.

By Matthew Chayes

matthew.chayes@newsday.comchayesmatthew

Matthew Chayes, a Newsday reporter since 2007, covers New York City.