At the request of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), makers of gadolinium-based contrast agents used to increase the quality of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have added a new boxed warning.
The warning states that patients with severe kidney dysfunction who receive the agents are at risk for developing a debilitating and potentially fatal disease known as nephrogenic system fibrosis (NSF) or nephrogenic fibrosing dermopathy (NFD). NSF causes the skin to become tight and rigid, making it difficult for sufferers to bend their joints. It can also lead to fibrosis in internal organs that may lead to organ failure.
Although worldwide there are only 200 cases reported annually, 25 cases were reported in the specific group of gadolinium-enhanced MRI patients with severe kidney dysfunction in Denmark and Austria. How many cases that are yet to be linked to this cause are unknown.
Patients who received an MRI or MRA and begin to feel tightening or swelling of the skin, an alteration in skin texture, muscle weakness, deep bone pain, or skin lesions should immediately contact a doctor.
A full list of NSF symptoms can be found at the website of Burg Simpson Eldredge Hersh and Jardine, P.C, attorneys at law, accepting cases nationwide for Gadolinium dye-caused cases of NSF. The attorneys at Burg Simpson are experts in NSF, an emerging systematic disorder first identified in 2000. If you are suffering from this new and terrifying illness, contact an attorney that can help you. Contact Burg-Simpson today.
