Norton Children’s Heart Institute, affiliated with the UofL School of Medicine, uses specially configured magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machines to help diagnose your child’s heart condition.

An MRI does not use radiation. It relies on a powerful magnet, radio waves and a computer to create pictures of the heart or other parts of the body.

Preparing Your Child for an MRI

The MRI uses a large magnet that is always on. No metal objects can be near it.

Dress your child in comfortable clothes that have no metal snaps or zippers. Remove metal hair barrettes, earrings are anything else your child is wearing that has metal in it. It’s OK to bring toys or stuffed animals into the MRI area, but make sure they have no metal parts.

Talk to your child about what to expect during the MRI scan. Your child may have to receive special medicine through an intravenous (IV) line.

Norton Children’s Heart Institute’s experienced technologists are specially trained to perform this test for children. They also will explain the scan to your child and answer any questions.

A day or two before your child’s MRI, you will receive specific instructions for what and when your child can eat or drink before the test.

Why Choose Norton Children’s Heart Institute

• Norton Children’s Hospital has been a pioneer in pediatric cardiothoracic surgery, performing Kentucky’s first pediatric heart transplant in 1986 and becoming the second site in the United States to perform an infant heart transplant.
• The American Board of Thoracic Surgery has certified our cardiothoracic surgeons in congenital heart surgery.
• The Adult Congenital Heart Association has accredited Norton Children’s Heart Adult Congenital Heart Disease Program as the only comprehensive care center in Kentucky and Indiana treating adults born with a heart defect.
• More than 17,000 children a year visit Norton Children’s Heart Institute for advanced heart care.
• Norton Children’s Heart Institute has offices across Kentucky and Southern Indiana to bring quality pediatric heart care closer to home.
• The Jennifer Lawrence Cardiac Intensive Care Unit (CICU) at Norton Children’s Hospital is the largest dedicated CICU in Kentucky, equipped with 17 private rooms and the newest technology available for heart care.