Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis & Miles, P.C.

Five years after the food and Drug Administration first alerted medical professionals about a possible link between gadolinium-based contrast agents (GBCAs) and a serious kidney dysfunction known as Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis (NSF), the agency this week announced it is requiring changes to the drug’s professional labeling in an effort to minimize the risk. The agency noted that NSF after GBCAs has not been reported in patients with normal kidney function, and that patients at greatest risk for developing the condition after GBCAs are those with impaired elimination of the drug, including patients with acute kidney injury or chronic, severe kidney disease.

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Today Beasley Allen filed two complaints in multidistrict litigation (MDL) on behalf of clients injured by gadolinium.

Gadolinium is linked to adverse health effects on patients with renal insufficiency or kidney failure, including Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis (NSF), which causes fibrosis of the skin and connective tissues and scarring of organs including lungs, heart, and liver and may lead to death.

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Injecting a toxic liquid metal such as gadolinium into the bloodstream may seem like a procedure from a sci-fi horror movie, but it is a common, every day occurrence in medical centers throughout the country.

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Another Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis (NSF) study has tied the debilitating condition to Gadolinium contrast agents used in Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). This latest NSF research was conducted by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), which examined a cluster of NSF patients at one unidentified St. Louis Missouri Hospital. The CDC found that the exposure to Gadolinium contrast dyes during MRI was independently associated with the development of NSF.

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Gadolinium based MRI contrast agents have been implicated in at least 1,000 cases of a debilitating disorder called Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis/ Nephrogenic Fibrosing Dermopathy (NSF/NSD) around the world. This horrible disease causes a buildup of collagen in tissues, leading to a severe thickening and hardening of the skin. NSF/NSD can completely immobilize patients, and in severe cases it can lead to death.

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If she knew then what she knows now, Sarah Fracella would not have undergone an MRI. “I don’t think there’s been a day in the last, probably, two years that’s gone by that I haven’t cried at least once about this,” said Fracella, 38, of Santa Barbara, whose skin is hardening painfully into something that looks startlingly like marble.

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Gadolinium based contrast agents used during MRIs, are known to be associated with the onset of Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis/ Nephrogenic Fibrosing Dermopathy (NSF/NSD) in patients with pre-existing kidney disease.

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An elderly man has sued several major health companies, claiming the dyes used to scan his failing kidneys caused a rare, painful and incurable disease. Peter Gerber, 72, of San Rafael, contends that injections of dyes containing the heavy metal gadolinium caused him to develop nephrogenic systemic fibrosis, or NSF. Also known as nephrogenic fibrosing demopathy, the disease can thicken the skin, stiffen joints, restrict movement and potentially lead to death if it affects internal organs.

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Nephrogenic systemic fibrosis (NSF) is a new fibrotic skin disease entity that was first recognized in 1997 in 15 patients receiving hemodialysis.

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Gadolinium based MRI contrast agents and Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis/ Nephrogenic Fibrosing Dermopathy (NSF/NFD) have been linked in yet another study. This time, researchers in Scotland have confirmed that gadolinium based contrast agents used in MRI’s are strongly associated with the onset of this often fatal disorder in people suffering from pre-existing kidney disease. Their findings only add to the growing body of evidence that shows a strong connection between NSF/NFD and gadolinium based contrast agents that are often used in MRIs.

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