Gadolinium Research

Many studies have linked gadolinium-based contrast agents (GBCAs) to the development of NSF among some patients. Following is an excerpt from the FDA's Questions & Answers and a list of some of the recently published research:

Together, accumulating data indicate that GBCAs increase the risk for the development of NSF among patients with severe renal insufficiency or renal dysfunction due to the hepato-renal syndrome or in the perioperative liver transplantation period.

April 2006: Gadolinium Case report published in Nephrology Dialysis Transplantation medical journal regarding a possible link between GBCAs and NSF. Advance Access - January 23, 2006. (Grobner et al, Nephrol Dial Transplant 2006; Vol 21 (4):1104 1108. Erratum 2006 Jun;21(6):1745.)

May 29, 2006:  Danish Gadolinium MRI study from the Danish Medicines Agency (DMA) about 25 reported cases of NSF among patients who had been exposed to Omniscan, a gadolinium contrast dye.

August 2, 2006: Gadolinium MRI Study published in the Journal of American Society of Nephrology found that gadolinium dye Omniscan triggers NSF. Retrospective study of about 370 patients with severe renal insufficiency using Omniscan estimated the risk of NSF to be 4%. (Marckmann et al, J Am Soc Nephrol 2006; 17: 2359 2362.)

November 13, 2006 (online) & January 2007 (print): Gadolinium study published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology finds gadolinium in the tissue of NSF patients. (High et al, J Am Acad Dermatol 2007; 56 (1): 21 26.)

February 7, 2007: Gadolinium Study results published in the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology showed that exposure to GBCAs created a "highly significant" risk for NSF in patients with end-stage renal disease. (Deo et al, Clin J Am Soc Nephrol 2: 264 267, 2007.)

February 12, 2007 (online) & April 2007 (print): Research Letter published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology shares study results linking gadolinium to NSF. (High et al, J Am Acad Dermatol 2007; 56 (4): 710-712.)

February 23, 2007: Study results published in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report of the Center for Disease Control (CDC) showed that exposure to GBCAs was independently associated with nephrogenic fibrosing dermopathy (NFD). (MMWR 2007; 56(07):137 141.)