Can I wear "micromodal" in an MRI?

September 12, 2022 8:56 PM

MRI in uhhh nine hours. Was told to wear 100% cotton undergarments but oops, I listened to a podcast and now all I have are MeUndies. Can I wear them?

They are 93% "micromodal" and otherwise elastane. A lot of googling has not helped me determine if these materials might contain the metallic fibers that are of concern. Do you know??

YANMD, YANMunderwear specialist etc.

posted by goodbyewaffles to Health & Fitness (9 answers total)

I’m not an underwear expert but I do a lot of sewing. Modal is basically rayon, ie cellulose, and shouldn’t be a concern (maybe unless your undies have sequins or sparkles?) Micromodal is just a finely spun version.
posted by music for skeletons at 9:00 PM on September 12, 2022 [1 favorite]

I have never been told to wear 100% cotton (but I just have a sample size of 2) just no wires/metal/underwire/clasps, mostly related to bras. Most undergarments will have some amount of elastic. Worst case you can just go no undies in a hospital gown. Just ask when you get there.
posted by Crystalinne at 9:11 PM on September 12, 2022 [6 favorites]

For a recent MRI I was told no underwires and no "technical sports clothes" (because metal fibres I guess). I would bet that modal is fine.
posted by altolinguistic at 12:24 AM on September 13, 2022

If they're specifically talking about your underwear for your MRI, presumably they'll put you in a hospital gown. So not wearing anything underneath is going to be an option, if you're comfortable with that. Just ask the nurse / PA when you come in about your underwear, and they'll let you know your options.
posted by Mchelly at 5:23 AM on September 13, 2022 [3 favorites]

I was provided these very cool pajama looking things for my MRI a couple of weeks ago. Would have been a little scratchy to go without undies but doable. Tell them what’s up when you get there - it is impossible to shock them. I my guess is they will give you whatever you need.

(The fact that it is all disposable sucks, I kept the socks just to tell myself I did what I could)
posted by drowsy at 6:00 AM on September 13, 2022

As long as they don’t have any antibacterial silver colloid-impregnated fiber BS, you are probably fine, and if not, they will definitely have terrible mesh medical undies available.
posted by tchemgrrl at 6:17 AM on September 13, 2022

Can you phone the hospital department doing the MRI and ask? I had one a few months ago and phoned them to ask if it was OK to take a nice calming diazepam beforehand. It was clearly a query they dealt with a lot and were happy to answer, so questions like yours are probably also on their phone call FAQs.
posted by penguin pie at 6:53 AM on September 13, 2022 [1 favorite]

The last time I had an MRI I was presented with a hospital gown and a pair of disposable undies on arrival and told to wear nothing else. YMMV but I bet you can call and ask.
posted by cheese at 11:29 AM on September 13, 2022

Response by poster: For any future readers, I wore them and it was fine!

(I appreciate the suggestions to call and ask, but unfortunately the hold wait time is over three hours soooo that was not super viable. But for those who have access to better care that is a very reasonable choice.)
posted by goodbyewaffles at 12:07 PM on September 13, 2022 [3 favorites]