A closer look
Getting a medical tattoo to cover a surgical scar or reconstruct an areola seems like the final healing step, until you slide into a magnetic resonance imaging tube. Many permanent cosmetics and medical inks contain iron oxide or other metallic derivatives to achieve deep pigmentation. When subjected to the immense, invisible magnetic fields of an MRI machine, these microscopic metal shards act like miniature antennas, rapidly conducting electrical currents. If not managed with cold compresses and specific radiologic protocols, the tattooed skin can literally cook from the inside out, turning a routine scan into a traumatic burn injury.
