Originally published at: Man surprised to learn that his chronic bad headaches were caused by an air gun pellet lodged in his skull for 20 years | Boing Boing
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Looks like that’s a CT scan (CAT scan), not an MRI. The “M” in “MRI” stands for “magnetic”. So depending on what the pellet was made of, an MRI may have removed the pellet in a rather forceful manner.
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Yup.
First imaging modality always is plain film (xray) or CT scan. Find a piece of metal without a clear provenance? No MRI for you!
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Typically pellets are lead, but they may make steel ones. They for sure make steel BBs.
I have had around a dozen MRIs to monitor my tumors. I always worried a little about if I had bit of steel in me I didn’t know about…
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Constantly amazed at these stories - some even crazier than this - Doc, I have headaches, don’t know why. … let’s take a look… oh there’s a 4 inch broken knife blade in your brain. Oh yeah, when I was 20 I was stabbed in the ear… huh… ok… didn’t connect the two… good to know.
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What a shame that he didn’t find out about this twenty years ago; still, better late than never, eh?
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He and his brother were afraid of being scolded by their parents, so they didn’t say a thing, and the wound was covered up by his hair, so the parents couldn’t really see it.
I recall doing something similar. Burned myself pretty good with the car cigarette lighter, and my parents were none the wiser.
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I’m stuck on it’s a shame. This man was 28 years old. I’d hope the fear of parents was over a long ago, so what else kept him from getting treatment for chronic pain? 
It reminds me of when I had to see a specialist because of sudden onset joint pain. It took me weeks to get an appointment, and it affected my quality of life every day. During my exam, the doctor gave me immediate treatment for pain relief and range of motion. Then he told me that if I’d waited for months before seeing a doctor, the damage could’ve been irreversible and I wouldn’t have effective use of my arm.
I was astonished that anyone would wait that long - partly because of the severe pain, but also because everything was difficult to navigate with one hand. It wasn’t clear if the reason he had patients in that position was crappy US healthcare options, or a general resistance to/avoidance of medical care.
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There was a memorable moment in one Black Mirror episode that demonstrated why that is standard procedure.
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I’ve heard that’s a common issue, and pediatricians have to keep in mind their patients may have recently attempted to fly by jumping out of a tree wearing a towel as a cape.
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According to the article, he forgot about it until the item was removed.
I’m partial to jumping from the garage with a flour sack cape
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When I was a kid, my toys included a BB gun and a toy army helmet. I shot at the helmet and the BB ricocheted and hit me right in the middle of the forehead. (Given the curvature of the helmet, this means I was unfortunately a very good shot!) The BB didn’t break the skin but did imbed itself halfway into my forehead. I spent a few frantic minutes before I could dig the BB out. My mom never noticed the temporary divot and I avoided a scolding.
I realize this story has similarities with the incident in A Christmas Story, but I swear it’s true.
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My classmate in 5th grade was shot between the eyes with a pellet gun. Luckily it didn’t get into his eyes or skull and had it removed by a plastic surgeon.
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That pellet had Excedrin written all over it.
Same, but it didn’t break the skin. It left me shaking and with a bruise on the bridge of my nose, but it could have been so much worse.
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