Children Tolerate MRI With Exogenous CO₂ for CVR Measurement

Background: Unsedated MRI use in pediatric patients is often feasible, but advanced imaging techniques, such as cerebrovascular reactivity (CVR) may affect the tolerability of MRIs without sedation. Administering exogenous carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) provides a CVR vasodilatory challenge, but its impact on children’s tolerance of unsedated MRI is unknown. Objective: To evaluate if children could tolerate MRI with exogenous CO 2 , compared to children undergoing only MRI. Design: Prospective, single-site, observational study. Participants: Pediatric patients with and without sickle cell disease and/or reactive airway disease who underwent unsedated MRI and completed a postscan questionnaire. Methods: A RespirAct ® device delivered CO 2 during the scan for MRI-measured CVR. Head displacement across frames quantified motion. Tolerability was defined as MRI study completion without lasting symptoms or serious adverse events. Results: 100 children participated. Sickle cell disease and/or react more...