A June 11 article by ProPublica explores the issue of gadolinium-based contrast agents, including three recent clinical studies that found traces of gadolinium in brain tissue long after contrast was administered.
The piece includes perspectives from Dr. Emanuel Kanal of the University of Pittsburgh and Michael Tweedle, PhD, from Ohio State University, who questioned the safety of some agents in an editorial published in Radiology (June 2015, Vol. 275:3, pp. 630-634).
ProPublica also spoke with GE Healthcare and Bayer HealthCare, two leading manufacturers of the agents.
According to the article, GE has reviewed the studies and other data and found no symptoms of potential injury to the brain associated with its Omniscan agent. Bayer reiterated that safety is the company's primary concern, and the firm has been in touch with the study authors to obtain more details about their findings.
