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One of the biggest concerns in radiology in recent years is the safety of gadolinium-based contrast agents (GBCAs) used in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Radiologists and patients began to question the safety of gadolinium a few years ago when a study came out in late 2014 showing the agent is deposited and retained in the brain. This, combined with a small percentage of patients who claim their health was harmed following gadolinium exams, has sparked a big debate in radiology over the safety of these agents.

This issue was raised in several sessions and with experts ITN spoke with at the 2017 Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) meeting last November. It was clear at RSNA that many radiologists have concern about gadolinium deposition and and possible effects of gadolinium toxicity.

Physicians have largely been reluctant to directly link gadolinium agents to these maladies, because there is little clinical evidence showing a direct correlation … Until the past few years, it was not widely known that the gadolinium accumulated and was retained in tissues, especially the brain.