Suit Alleges Oregon Teen Burned During MRI

A teenage boy and his mother have sued a Portland hospital, alleging the boy was burned after a technician left metal discs on his body during a magnetic resonance imaging exam.

The Oregonian reports that Aaron Lee and his mother, Sharon, seek $2 million for pain and suffering and $30,000 in economic damages. The lawsuit was filed Wednesday against Oregon Health & Science University.

Lee’s lawyer Jane Clark says the boy was 16 and living in Vancouver, Wash., when he got the MRI in September 2011. He first received an electrocardiogram.

The lawsuit says patches containing metal discs were attached to his chest for the ECG and were not removed for the MRI, resulting in dime-sized burns when the metal heated up.

In a statement, the university said it couldn’t comment specifically due to privacy laws but added that “patient safety is our top priority.”

Clark says the boy now lives in New York.