The World Is Running Out of Helium. Why Doctors are Worried
A global helium shortage has doctors worried about one of the natural gas's most essential, and perhaps unexpected, uses: MRIs.
Strange as it sounds, the lighter-than-air element that gives balloons their buoyancy also powers the vital medical diagnostic machines. An MRI can't function without some 2,000 liters of ultra-cold liquid helium keeping its magnets cool enough to work. But helium — a nonrenewable element found deep within the Earth's crust — is running low, leaving hospitals wondering how to plan for a future with a much scarcer supply.... [F]our of five major U.S. helium suppliers are rationing the element, said Phil Kornbluth, president of Kornbluth Helium Consulting. These suppliers are prioritizing the health care industry by reducing helium allotments to less essential customers.
Hospitals haven't canceled patients' MRIs or shut down machines yet. They have seen helium costs rise at an alarming rate, though — possibly up to 30%, guessed Phil Kornbluth, president of Kornbluth Helium Consulting. But without an end in sight for the helium shortage, the future of MRI remains uncertain.... The problem is that no other element is cold enough for the MRI. "There's no alternative," said Donna Craft, a regional construction manager for Premier Inc. who contracts with helium suppliers for some 4,000 hospitals. "Without helium, MRIs would have to shut down...."
GE and Siemens are both developing MRIs requiring less liquid helium. Siemens recently introduced one requiring just 0.7 liters, and, according to Panagiotelis, GE rolled out a machine that's "1.4 times more efficient than previous models." These technologies aren't widely available, though, and replacing the country's 12,000 MRI machines — each weighing up to 50,000 pounds — is anything but a quick fix. Meanwhile, hospitals keep installing additional conventional MRI machines to meet demand for diagnostic scans.
